The REAL Love Smoothie
by JV's Jack
Summary: Just one of those lab mishaps... but the results are more than just unpredictable. Let's hope the penguins can put things right once again! And FYI, there's all 14 chaps now!
1. Chapter 1

It was just another typical day at the Central Park zoo. The weather was fair and the zoo was shut down for the day, so there were hardly any people around except for the zookeepers. Now there was lots of time to spare for Kowalski as he carefully measured a green chemical into a beaker. Then he tinkered a bit with his abacus, and then returned back to the beaker and poured it into a larger beaker that was already filled with a transparent, colorless chemical. It began sizzling as it turned into a blue color. Kowalski took in a puzzled look as he looked over his clipboard of papers. He began to compute his steps into his head before he smiled brightly, "Ah, ha!" He took out a tube of a pink substance and pulled open the cork that enclosed it inside. He quickly and carefully put two drops in, and suddenly the blue chemical turned red.

"Perfect!" he exclaimed proudly.

Just then Skipper walked out of the bathroom with the morning paper in his flipper. He yawned a bit and then spotted Kowalski working at the table.

"Kowalski," he called to him. "What've you got there?"

Kowalski smiled as he held up the beaker with excitement, "Skipper! This may be the very evidence we need to prove that emotion is all basic chemistry! What we have here is a successful imitation of the chemical released in the brain to induce hormones to express affection."

Skipper cocked a brow, "Uh, huh… so exactly _what_ is it?"

"Well, this is an experiment I codenamed Project: A1-709, a.k.a... a love serum."

Skipper shook his head, "A love serum, Kowalski? Is it really all that necessary?"

"Skipper this could be the very thing that can prove that affection and emotion is all chemistry and that we mortals can very well and easily manipulate and control such! A major breakthrough in modern chemistry!"

"And also a major breakthrough in wooing Doris, eh Kowalski?" Skipper folded his flippers.

Kowalski blushed, "Well, I wouldn't say that had been the major objective all along, but…"

Skipper approached him, "Listen Kowalski, I don't know about all that 'control of emotion' mumbo-jumbo, but that's just the kind of talk that could tamper with the natural balance and whatnot. There's no reason to make these things complicated, right?"

"Eh… well, I suppose…"

"Thatta boy, Kowalski," he rewarded with a slap on the back. "Now get rid of that junk, before it poisons someone. We don't want another lab experiment gone awry here."

"Yes, Skipper," Kowalski replied almost sadly.

Skipper began to waddle to the ladder and head outside, leaving Kowalski clean up the lab equipment. He stared at his red creation and held it up. It was warm just a few moments ago, but it began to cool down. He stared at the glowing bubbles inside and he began to smile. He began to blush and his heart raced with excitement just from staring at it. Then suddenly he realized the love serum was beginning to give off its "powers" through the air! He quickly put it down on the table and stared at it.

"Whoa," he muttered. "That is some _addictive _stuff."

He looked around and stared down at it. Getting rid of it won't be an easy task. Perhaps it wasn't such a good idea to tamper with such sensitive and fragile matters after all. The results might've proven quite unpredictable… and perhaps devastating. Something he wouldn't give Doris either now. He scratched at the question of how he could safely recycle the chemical without harming anyone else. "Ah!" he exclaimed happily and pulled out a glass bottle of soda. He popped it open and gulped down the cola… and threw that away. Then he pulled out an empty glass bottle of soy sauce and poured the love serum in it. Then he sealed it with a cork and he placed it all the way at the back of the fridge.

"There," he nodded as he closed the fridge and wiped his flippers. "That should make a suitable environment until I can find the time to take it to biohazard later."

Then he returned back to the table to clean up whatever was left on the table. As he took care of the equipment, he began to wonder why he even bothered to make something like that. True he hoped it would bring some… recognition for his hard work, but now that he thought of the possible mishaps that could happen and wondered if it would all have been worth it. He shuddered; _all possible outcomes are unpredictable at this point_, he thought as he swept up the last of the equipment.


	2. Chapter 2

For the rest of the afternoon Skipper and company spent lounging, complete with sunscreen and each with their own sets of shades, basking in the warm sun. Everything just seemed at peace and the penguins were very much relaxed and enjoying this free time. Suddenly, Marlene came bounding up and hopped over the fence to meet them.

"Hey, guys," she smiled.

"'Ello, Marlene," waved back Private.

"You guys taking today off?"

"Indeed," replied Kowalski.

"Yup," nodded Skipper as he stretched. "_Way_ off."

Marlene smiled, "Well that's good to hear. 'Cause usually you guys are always working, so it's actually a nice change."

"Oh no, not now, Marlene," frowned Skipper.

"What?"

"Don't think I don't know what's going to happen next."

Marlene shook her head, "Yeah, I don't."

"You're going to start pointing out how we're always on duty and show less gratitude about our hard work keeping this zoo safe from diabolical schemes."

"Excuse me?" she put her paws on her hips. "I don't show less gratitude. All I'm saying is that you guys overwork all the time and that you guys should kick back on more days."

"And she's off, ladies and gentlemen," said Skipper while folding his flippers.

"What? It's not a bad thing, it's a compliment. Maybe if you spent less time working and being paranoid about _everything_ it wouldn't bug you so much when I say these are some rare occasions when I see you guys lounging."

Skipper removed his shades and got up from his chair and approached the otter, "Look, I'm only going to say this for the last time; we're an elite force. Doesn't that already explain everything to you why we do what we do? We take our duties with pride, so I think a little gratitude for our support of the safety of this zoo would be greatly appreciated."

"See? This is exactly what I was talking about, you take things too seriously. Now you're just getting worked up over a simple compliment."

"No, I'm getting worked up over that tone you're giving."

"What_ tone_?"

"That one, that sarcastic tone. All I'm asking is for a little appreciation, but you're just giving sass and sarcasm."

"I am not! I do appreciate all the hard work you do for our helpless little zoo that is under zookeepers' supervision _and_ with a police station _and_ an animal control nearby."

"See? There you go again."

"What?"

Private raised his shades with a frown at the sight of the two arguing. It wasn't unusual that the two would butt heads, but he couldn't shake the feeling that maybe something was off today.

"Don't you think we ought to do something?" he whispered to Kowalski.

"Just ignore them, Private," Kowalski simply said without turning his head. "They'll tire themselves out eventually."

Private looked back at Rico but he had been snoring noisily the whole time. Private looked back and continued to watch them like if it was a tennis match. Words were thrown back and forth, back and forth. But even with the passage of time, it didn't look like they were even about to slow down. This wasn't unusual either, but Private couldn't help but feel that something was out of place.

"I'm just saying what kind of elite force, out of all places would end up in the Central Park zoo, if you're supposedly a high-ranked team?" Marlene pointed out.

"So what are you trying to say? You don't want us around anymore?" Skipper raised a brow.

"I've just always wondered why a weird group of penguins like you guys would wind up here in the first place."

"Well if we're not around, who do you think is going to stop the lemurs from throwing ridiculous, late night noise-making, or keep the sewage rats in their place, or stop lab experiments from going wrong, huh? You?"

"Okay, now you've crossed the line! And by the way, the only lab experiments that go wrong are _all_ yours!"

"Alright! Now _you've_ crossed the line!" He snapped.

"Well you crossed the line first!" She exclaimed angrily.

"Doesn't matter, 'cause the main point here in this presentation is you!"

"What? Don't turn this on me!"

Private began to feel more and more uneasy as the argument progressed. He really didn't like to see two individuals fight, let alone Skipper and Marlene. Suddenly an idea popped into his head as he hopped off the lounge chair.

"Hey, how about some lovely cups of smoothie to make you guys relax?" Private suggested happily.

"It was you who started all this in the first place," Skipper shot at Marlene.

"What?" retorted Marlene. "Whoa, whoa, I did not start this. You were the one who got mad over a compliment I gave, remember?"

"Okay, so I'll go get some," Private smiled nervously and quickly waddled away back inside the HQ.

He quickly climbed down the ladder and rushed over to the cupboard to pull out a blender to start whipping up some of those smoothies. He really believed that after they had some of his smoothies, everything would come back down and they could enjoy the rest of their day in peace. Once he had it set on the table, he waddled over the fridge to pull out two fish and several ice cubes. He felt fortunate that he got the last of the fish before Rico, or this wouldn't be possible. Private waddled back to the blender, stuffed the items inside, and pushed a button that quickly and efficiently shred the fish and ice. He opened up the blender and stuck his flipper inside and had a sample of the smoothie. Private noisily sipped it and judged the flavor in his head.

"It's rather plain," he concluded sadly. "I know!"

He waddled back into the fridge and began to scan his eyes throughout the fridge until he laid his eyes on a glass bottle at the back of the fridge and pulled it out.

"Mm-mm!" he smiled at it. "Soy sauce always goes well with fish!"

He waddled over to the blender and poured a good amount of it inside. Then he pushed the button to let it mix in there nice and easy. He watched it twirl and mix, but he couldn't help but notice the sauce looked a little different today. Boy did today seem peculiar!

"Much better!" he exclaimed happily as he stopped the blender and looked for cups to pour it all in.

When he did he couldn't help but feel a pleasant aroma coming from the smoothies. It relaxed him as he sniffed it in. _These smoothies look so good; it's bound to settle their dispute_! He thought happily as he smiled at it. Suddenly he could feel his thirst working up inside. He stuck his flipper in one of the cups and shrugged at the thought of just a simple taste. He licked his beak as he opened wide… his beak was already watering from the thought of that sweet, succulent taste…

"Oh, dear!" he exclaimed. "I'm keeping them too long!"

He quickly wiped his flipper, picked up the cups, and quickly waddled back up to the surface.

* * *

"I'm saying no!" shouted Marlene.

"And I'm saying yes," Skipper growled.

"No way!"

"Yes way!"

"What?"

"I'm back!" Private happily and hurriedly waddled over to them until- _OOF_!

Private slipped and the cups went flying! Private watched helplessly as the drinks flew to air and were falling for a landing. Kowalski removed his shades at the sight as the smoothies hovered down. Rico however, continued sleeping. Out of reflex, Marlene stuck out her paw to try to catch one, but unfortunately she missed and the smoothie splattered all over her head! Skipper then spotted the second cup and attempted the same move. He quickly grabbed hold of the cup successfully and then turned to his right and caught the flying liquid inside. Private put his flipper over his beak at Marlene.

"I'm really sorry," apologized Private sadly.

Marlene tried to wipe the smoothie off her face as Skipper began to gloat behind her back.

"You see, Marlene," he chuckled. "I told you can be on guard _and_ unwind a bit. It's all about balance, _right_?"

Marlene growled as she wiped the last of the smoothie off her. Private frowned at her angry look. What had he done? All he wanted was to make peace between the two of them, and now they were going to argue even more!

"You have to be… the BIGGEST JERK!" she snapped through grinding teeth. Skipper cocked a brow. "I hope you're happy, mister!"

"Oh yeah, _more_ than satisfied, Marlene," he teased.

"Ugh!"

Skipper chuckled, "What can I say?"

Then he lifted the cup to his beak and quickly gulped some of it in. Then- _Cha Ching_! It happened quickly and without warning. It was bye-bye Skipper for him then. Suddenly the lead penguin choked on the smoothie and began to cough. Marlene smirked at the sight.

"Ha! How do you feel now, Mr. Elite?" she laughed.

Skipper shook his head and looked at Marlene and blinked. There was something off about her all of a sudden… something striking.

"I feel…" he began. "Light-headed."

"Ha!" teased Marlene. "Serves you right!"

Skipper blinked a couple more times… before he smiled and his eyes drooped. But Marlene was too angry and began to gloat at him to notice this.

"That's because you _can't_ find a balance!" she pointed out.

"No I can't," he replied dreamily.

"Right! Wait… huh? Did you just agree with me?"

Kowalski perked up at what he just heard. Private got up and cocked his head to one side. Rico kept sleeping.

"Yep," continued Skipper. "I can never find a balance at all when I think about you."

Marlene's eyes darted side to side in curiosity, Kowalski gasped and Private just put his flippers on his beak and looked on wide-eyed. Rico kept sleeping.

"Um… uh, okay," stammered Marlene. "Was that supposed to be an insult? 'Cause I don't think you said it quite right."

"Insult?" Skipper gasped. "Why would I want to insult a pretty dame? That'd be ungentlemanly of me. I know better than that."

Kowalski and Private gasped even louder! Suddenly Rico sat up in alarm! What?!

"Um… are you okay?" Marlene waved her paw in front of his face. "Maybe the smoothie went to your head or something?"

"Never better, Marlene," then he approached her and flipped his flipper along his head as if he was fixing hair in place. "Just the very sound of your voice makes everything around me better. And your face just illuminates even the shadows the sun misses."

Gasp, gasp, gasp! The team couldn't believe their ears as they stood up in worry as if they were under attack! Rico was already beginning to feel sick! Even Marlene's mouth swung open and her eyes widened! There was something definitely wrong here.

"Um, okay… uh… thanks?" she smiled nervously and began to step back. But as she did, Skipper approached closer too! "Um… yeah, so uh… I guess maybe we did go off the deep end. Hehe…"

"Oh, not at all," replied Skipper sweetly.

"Uh huh, yeah…. Well I guess maybe you should get back to that day off, y'know? Get some sun, sit back, don't push yourself too hard…"

Skipper smirked and leaned closer, "Maybe you could help me with that?"

"I'd rather not. Besides, I'm, uh… late for an appointment… with uh… someone… okay, gotta go."

With that, she took off. She didn't want to stick around for anymore of _that_. That was a scary strategy he pulled! It worked, but she was a little angry she gave in to it quickly. Oh, well, she'll have to wait until Skipper cools down later on.

Skipper sighed dreamily, and his team was just confused to see this side of Skipper! Since when? Why now? Why her? What was even going on??? Kowalski approached him cautiously.

"Uh, Skipper?" he asked. "Was that some sort of strategy to, um, make her leave?"

"Make her leave?" Skipper turned around to him. "Now why would I want to do that?"

Rico and Private looked at each other and then back at Skipper.

"Um, well, just a second ago you were pretty cranky so I assumed-"

"Ah, Kowalski, you think too much," he patted his shoulder. "Now men, enjoy the rest of this fine afternoon. For who knows when the next will come, right? We need to keep sharp."

"Um, right, Skipper," Kowalski nodded and smiled nervously.

With that Skipper waddled back down to HQ, leaving the dumbstruck team to their thoughts.

"Uh, Kowalski?" began Private. "Is he alright?"

"That remains uncertain, Private," he shook his head. "He seems calm, but he doesn't seem to be his normal self."

Rico shook his head and grunted. He pulled out a paper bag and threw up in it. After all, he was mushy talk sensitive.


	3. Chapter 3

Marlene yawned and stretched on her bunk as she sat up. Once she felt a little more awake, she got off to brush her fur, and once that she finished she stepped out to get some breakfast. Outside, she took a look at the blue skies. It seemed to be just the right kind of morning to start off the day. She couldn't help but admire it; it just seemed so perfect today! She already made plans to just lie back and enjoy this all gorgeous weather. With a big smile she took a couple more steps forward.

"Marlene!"

"Ahh!" she screamed.

She whirled around to find Skipper standing there beside her. She quickly tried to catch her breath.

"Don't sneak up on me like that!" she scolded. "Whew…"

"Sorry about that," he began. "But I felt it was urgent we talked over what happened yesterday."

"Huh... Oh!" For a moment there she had almost forgotten (or at least wanted to) about _that_ odd memory. "Well, I guess maybe, uh, I might've gotten on your bad side. And I realize that now, so for that I'm sorry… I guess, but let's just be clear that-"

"Say no more," said Skipper as he shot out his flipper over her muzzle. "Maybe I might've pushed myself a little too hard on you."

"…okay?" She pushed his flipper off.

"Maybe that wasn't the right tactic to pull out on you, so for _that_ I'm sorry. And, I want to make it up to you."

"Well… huh? Really?" This wasn't usual for Skipper to be so nice to her. "You don't have to."

"No, don't sweat it. I really want to. Besides, it'd make me feel better."

"No, really you don't have to."

Suddenly Skipper wrapped his flipper around Marlene, which greatly surprised her, "I insist. Now why don't we start by grabbing some grub, shall we?"

Marlene blinked, this was _very _unusual. But at the same time… it was about time he started showing a bit more respect to her. She thought this over her head and shrugged.

"Sure why not," she rolled her eyes. "I guess it's the least you can do make up for being such a jerk."

"That's my girl!"

Marlene cocked a brow, why did she have such a bad feeling about this?

* * *

Alice began feeding the elephant with a cart-load of all kinds of food for all the other zoo animals. She heaved out the elephant food and entered through the gates of the exhibit, leaving behind the cart. Soon after, Skipper swiftly swooped in and hopped into the cart. He scanned the contents and began picking at different foods, and only after a few seconds inside, he hopped out and left quickly. He picked up fish, guava berries, and some honey-roasted nuts and had it all stuffed in a popcorn box. Alice didn't notice a thing when she returned.

Marlene was told to stay put by the dolphins' exhibit for Skipper. She couldn't really figure out why he would want to her to stay there, but she did anyway. She sat on a bench that faced the dolphins as they swam and splashed as they pleased. From time to time, she would wave at Doris and her friends and then just left them alone to let them continue romping in the water. The next thing Marlene knew, she saw a tall popcorn box walking towards her! She yelped for a moment there until it turned around and revealed Skipper behind it.

"Sorry to keep you waiting," he apologized.

"Um, that's fine," she smiled. "Actually that was pretty quick."

Skipper hopped up onto the bench and seated himself right next to Marlene and placed the box right between them. Marlene got up and took a peek inside.

"So, you picked up other things?" she asked with wonder.

"Sure, it would've been boring," he explained. "Plus I thought it'd be a special surprise treat, my dear."

"Uh, hehe… that's so sweet," she chuckled nervously and bit down on her fish.

The two pretty much picnicked right there. Even though Marlene really felt she shouldn't really eat the other foods, she felt it also kind of rude to just refuse it and ate several nuts and a couple of berries. She felt herself so stuffed and completely satisfied that she lied back against the wooden bench and stretched herself out.

"That was great," she complimented with a satisfied grin. "This breakfast is actually kinda nice. Thanks Skipper."

"Pleasure's all mine, Marlene," replied Skipper with a warm smile.

Marlene felt herself very comfortable and very relaxed. There was nothing like a wonderful meal to start an already beautiful morning.

"Well, I guess since your apology's accepted," she yawned and sat up. "Wanna get going? I'm sure the others must miss their fearless leader." She chuckled at the last part.

"Nah, they're doing just fine without me," Skipper assured as he rested his back head on his flippers. "Besides this gives them more time to take a break… and more time for us to be together."

"Uh, sure," she shrugged. "Okay… well, what'd you had in mind for us to do?"

Skipper turned his view to the sky and sat there with a thoughtful look on his face, until he looked back at Marlene and smiled.

* * *

Doris splashed out of the water with grace and power. It was obvious she enjoyed these playful times. Then another of her dolphin friends splashed out of the water as well- with Marlene at its back! "Woo hoo!" she screamed with excitement as it leapt out and dove back into the water. Then suddenly a third dolphin splashed out with Skipper riding it! "Whoa!" he yelped as it hit the water. The two were having a great time playing with the dolphins, and the dolphins didn't seem to mind giving the two rides either. Everyone seemed to have a great time. Eventually, Marlene and Skipper decided it was time to leave before Alice or any other zookeeper would find them. Marlene and Skipper waved good-bye at them as they left the exhibit.

The next stop was at the "zoo-venir" shop. There Marlene and Skipper were actually- wait for it- playing dress-up! They put on different hats and accessories and posed in front the mirror, just laughing at all the different ridiculous outfits they put on. Marlene put on a feathery hat and scarf while Skipper put on a fireman helmet and held up an axe. After that, Marlene put on a police cap and twirled a club while Skipper put on a detective's hat and blew on a pipe that made bubbles. Marlene wore a hippo mask while Skipper put on a giraffe mask. Then Marlene put on a wig that conveniently had her matching fur color in a hairstyle with fancy curls, while Skipper put on an Elvis wig! They both laughed and suddenly Marlene pointed to the photo booth.

_SNAP, SNAP, SNAP_! The camera clicked away as the two posed in their silly outfits and making funny faces. On the last photos to take, Marlene actually wore a bride's veil and Skipper wore a groom's bow tie. Marlene already planned her pose by putting her paws on her hips and having her back against Skipper's… however Skipper had another pose in mind. Skipper actually scooped Marlene up and lifted her in a bridal style! She was shocked by this action and they looked at each other's eyes. Skipper kept his confident smile, while Marlene could herself lightly blushing. "Smile!" he exclaimed happily, but he may have slipped on the plastic seat they stood on because then he lost his footing and they both went crashing down! "Waah!!!" they screamed as the camera took a shot at their misfortune. The two lied there trying to compute what the heck just happened, until they looked at each other and they couldn't help but laugh it off. Eventually the machine popped out their resulting photos like a toaster.

They went pretty much wandered around the zoo. They went to the cafeteria to scarf down on all the sweets and delights the buffet had to offer. Then the two visited the chameleons to pet them and play with them as if they had gone to the petting zoo. Heck, they even went to watch the zookeepers train the colorful birds for the bird show they performed. They secretly hid behind potted plants as they awed at their amazing stunts and performances like flying into hoops or intricate formations. As Marlene looked on, she didn't even notice Skipper just kept smiling at her warmly, not even paying the slightest attention to the spectacle.

Soon the sun began to dip behind the towering city buildings as Skipper and Marlene sat at the ledge of the bell tower just enjoying the view. The two sighed; pretty much exhausted after all that.

"Y'know, that was actually pretty cool," smiled Marlene. "I didn't think you could actually be this much fun."

"Why thank you, Marlene," smiled Skipper. "I owe it all to you."

"Aw, you don't mean that."

"Course I do. You were the one who gave me the advice to loosen up, to relax a little."

"Well I gotta say you were great with that today."

The two looked back at the sunset for a moment, sapping in the warmth of the sun's final rays.

"So," began Marlene. "What made you be so nice like this all of a sudden?"

"What? Is it so wrong of me to be spontaneous?" asked Skipper.

"No, it's just that you never do."

He shrugged, "I guess there's always a first for everything."

"Well, you should keep it that way. I like you like this."

Skipper cocked a brow with a smile, "So you like me this way?"

Marlene nodded, "It's very nice."

Skipper's eyes drooped, "I feel the same way about you."

"Cool… wait what?"

"When we're together like this. You're so much fun than I ever imagined you were. You bring out the best in me. And when I am, I see with the biggest grin on your face since they opened up that piñata."

Marlene blushed, "Th-that's not true…"

Suddenly Skipper wrapped his flipper around Marlene and pulled her into a hug! This shocked her very much; he never gives her a hug! And the thought and action made her blush even more!

"And you look so cute when you do, Marlene, I could just take you back to HQ and keep you all to myself!" he exclaimed as he snuggled his beak into her fur.

Her heart raced and she could feel herself on fire! Boy was it getting hot out here! But the hug just felt so nice, this gesture was so nice, and he never said those things to her before! This all... actually… almost feels like… a dream… This whole day just seems like… a wonderful dream… and if it was, she didn't want to wake up from it anytime soon.


	4. Chapter 4

Private happily sat on the floor watching some mindless television like a distracted toddler, Rico just finished pouring pounds of salt over his dinner plate of fish, and Kowalski tinkered again with his trusty abacus. He was creating experiments to test Skipper for any sort of illness or condition that could've thrown off the disastrous track switch that happened earlier. As if on cue, Skipper hopped in from the hatch. All three penguins turned to look back at him as he waddled with a big and satisfied grin on his face. It was clear they were worried if he was alright or if things were going to get any weirder than it already has. Kowalski rose from his seat.

"Skipper, are- well, is everything okay?" he asked cautiously.

"Never better, Kowalski," he replied cheerfully without turning to him.

He waddled over to the fridge and pulled out a glass bottle of soda and waddled over to Rico, who continued to stare worriedly at him for any funny business. With a whack at his gut, Skipper forced a bottle opener out of Rico- _"Blah!"_- and popped his drink open. He gulped it down while the team continued to observe him.

"Um, so how did you spend you're day off?" asked Kowalski. "Strangely for the second time in a row."

"Fantastic, my friend!" he exclaimed happily. "Today couldn't have been any better! Well, maybe a little more… but I still had a great time!"

"Uh…" Kowalski was a little unsure if this was a good thing or not.

"Well, what _were_ you doing, sir?" asked Private curiously.

"Thought you'd never ask!" he smiled. "I spent the whole day with Marlene, of course! And boy does she know how to have a good time."

The team gathered a little closer and gasped. This was very rare… actually really out of character.

"Oh, is that so?" smiled Kowalski nervously.

"Yup, we had a great picnic, actually watched the bird show, played with all the knick-knacks and silly costumes at the zoovenir shop, and the best part of all… we watched the sunset. Side by side. Alone… and possibly in love…"

Rico suddenly choked on his fish and held his throat, gasping frantically for air! Private rushed over to help his poor friend, straining to make him spit it out! Skipper didn't seem to care one bit as he sighed dreamily, reminiscing the day over and over in his head. Kowalski shook his head in disbelief.

"Um, perhaps it's best to maybe take it easy and just get to bed early tonight, okay?" he suggested. "In the morning, maybe we could run some diagnosis for any development of the common cold, or a brain tumor, or… avian flu?"

"Nonsense, Kowalski!" Skipper swayed happily. "I tell ya, I've never felt so alive and upbeat before! I've never felt this way about anyone before either! It's like taking that first dip in the icy, frozen waters of the arctic, refreshing and exhilarating. Just the way I take my morning showers." He sipped his bottle. "Ahh…"

Poor Rico continued to choke and Private was beginning to feel desperate to get that thing out, Rico was already turning blue for crying out loud!

"Skipper, I strongly suggest you get to bed as soon as possible. This is just simply unlike you, and I'd really like to run these diagnostics and-"

"Oh! Did I even mention that we rode the dolphins?"

Kowalski panicked as he held his head in his flippers, "You _dared_ to ride Doris on her back like some sort of CARNIVAL RIDE?!"

"Relax, Kowalski, neither of us rode on her. Her friends were happy to hitch us rides, which I paid handsomely with sardines."

"Skipper, you've gone mad!"

"At ease, Kowalski, it was only a date."

Finally after the two struggled and scrambled all over the place, Rico threw a final fierce punch against his belly and the half-eaten fish popped out of his beak. Private looked down at the poor fellow as he watched him drastically change colors from purple to white again. Then Rico continued to lie there, letting his tongue hang from his beak as he tried to catch his breath he urgently needed.

"I'm sure this is a first for everyone, and a bit of a surprise," stated Skipper. "But I'm perfectly fine, and happy I might add. What's so wrong about me finding love anyway?"

"Well, I guess there's nothing wrong," Kowalski scratched his head. "But it just seems… well, not _you_… at all…"

Skipper cocked a brow and shook his head, "Well sorry to disappoint. So I'm not made of stone after all, big whoop. I finally understand all the annoying love songs that pop into the speaker when we're put on hold for pizza. And that took the fun and love of a beautiful otter I took for granted this whole time." He paused for a moment and lowered his head before he looked back up again. "Well not anymore. From now on, Marlene has my full, undivided, and loving attention. From this moment on, I'm making it my personal mission to make her all mine."

He gulped the last bit of his soda, tossed it into a trash bin without breaking it somehow, and waddled over to the bathroom. He left the team with their mouths hanging unbelievably at what their leader had become! Once the door slammed shut, Rico immediately pulled out a paper bag again and puked bits of what he had for dinner, his lunch… even his breakfast!

"Kowalski," began Private frighteningly. "I don't think I like the new Skipper."

"Neither do I," replied Kowalski as he turned around to meet his worried eyes.

"Well, if Skipper says he's found love, maybe we should respect his wishes. After all, he seemed serious about sticking to his mission… whatever it is."

"But it just doesn't seem right," pondered Kowalski. "It seems so sudden and so unlike his personality traits. I've only a bad feeling about this…"

"What are we going to do now?"

"Well, for now we have no choice but to wait and see what unfolds. I'll continue researching for the proper diagnostics to perform on him."

"But, Kowalski, what if something goes wrong in the meantime? What if he gets hurt? Or maybe even Marlene…"

"Yes, I know. Marlene's safety also hangs in the balance."

Rico huffed, trying to recover from the illness he was suffering.

"We have no choice, Private," he shook his head. "We'll just have to be alert no matter what happens. This is will be much more difficult knowing that _two_ lives could be in danger, but I believe this is why Skipper had trained us for. So let's do this."

"Got it," nodded Private.

Even Rico grunted and nodded with agreement at their somewhat tactic. It was small and simple, but what can they do?

* * *

Meanwhile in the otter's habitat, Marlene slept peacefully in her bunk. Along with having a wonderful day, apparently she also had a memorable dream for the night. She kept grinning and chuckling in her sleep, she couldn't help but dream about Skipper. She was already dreaming of what the next day might turn out to be for the both of them. More fun and excitement, or maybe just relaxing and just taking in a glorious afternoon or maybe even share a romantic evening. Who knows… maybe tomorrow will be the day they might even have their first kiss. She smiled in her sleep as she was already dreaming of Skipper holding her in a warm hug… and then he dipped her just a bit while he supported her with his strong yet gentle flippers… then he told her the three magic words that made her entire world light up… and then they'd lean in… with passion and pure love… yes, that would make everything right.

It never occurred to her why he suddenly had a change of heart towards her, but who cares? She liked the way Skipper was now, and there might not be anything else that could make her happier. Who knows… maybe she just might even… love him.

Her eyes popped open and she sat up. She put her paw over her head. _What am I thinking_? She thought. _That's crazy! So we hung out today… very unusual, but still. Maybe it's just a one-time thing and everything'll go back to normal… like always._ She set herself back down into her bunk. _Still, I guess it's harmless to dream, at least just this once_. She rolled over to her side and the dream appeared again. Again under the stars, again staring at each other warmly, again the dip, again the words, again leaning in…

Marlene didn't even realize she was actually puckering her lips in her sleep! She yelped and sat up again when she realized what she was doing.

"What am I doing?!" she shrieked and she even smacked herself. "Get a grip, Marlene! It's too good to be true!"

She sighed and threw herself back with her paws over her face, but when she did she saw his confident smile again. She growled and snapped her eyes open and turned herself over. She repeated this cycle of sleeping and waking and it began to frustrate her. She couldn't be falling for him! It was plain out of character.


	5. Chapter 5

Kowalski stabbed his screwdriver into a screw and turned it to make sure it stayed nice and tight on his machine. Private had gone to the fridge and scanned inside to find a bottle of soda. He reached and touched the soy sauce bottle, then shoved it to the side to reach for the soda, and then closed the fridge. He popped it open nervously; he was still concerned if anything could go wrong with how things are turning out right now. He waddled over to Kowalski and looked at what looked like a shell of a very big machine.

"Kowalski, what is that?" asked Private.

"Well, since I can't get Skipper to the vet," answered Kowalski without turning away from his work. "I'll have to bring the vet to him by building our own CAT scan machine."

"Do you really think Skipper's gone bad in his head?"

"Technically speaking, this was a random option. I have no clue what else could be wrong with him."

Rico squawked as he held up a metal pole upwards, straining to hold it in place.

"Just a little while longer, Rico," called Kowalski.

"Speaking of Skipper, where is he?" asked Private.

"Come to think of it, I haven't seen him this morning. Perhaps he left to… see Marlene?"

"I hope nothing will go wrong."

"I'll have to work a little faster. Rico, make sure that stays in place!"

Rico nodded as he tightened his grip and groaned from the weight of the pole. Suddenly a little fly buzzed in before Rico. Rico tried to ignore it at first, but the fly continued to buzz and dash around him. The penguin growled as he snapped his beak to swatter the fly away, but it dodged it. He growled and continued to chomp at the air. He was so busy trying to kill the fly, that he didn't realize he was moving the pole from its place. He moved himself farther and farther from the fly, until eventually the pole gave in and all the metal it held up came crashing down! _CLAMP! CRASH! BANG!_ The metal shell suddenly turned into a pile of metal and rubble. All three penguins looked down at the broken pile.

"This may take a while," said Kowalski.

* * *

Marlene stared up at the open skies. It was just another brilliant morning as she sat atop her habitat. She breathed in the warm air and sighed, pleased with the good weather. Suddenly she could hear Skipper's voice from below. She turned to him and smiled brightly. He waved at her- with that cool smile. As she hopped to her feet, she didn't pay much attention to her footing until the next thing she knew, she was falling! She yelped by the sudden gravity shift, but luckily Skipper caught her fall. She fell right into his open flippers- how sweet!

"Nice to see you, too," chuckled Skipper.

Marlene couldn't help but laugh along with him, and her eyes widened when she realized- he was hugging her! This felt kind of nice. Eventually she began returning the hug by tightening her grip around his neck. This was _really_ nice. She was smiling brightly, and she wanted to enjoy every second of that hug. Until suddenly her eyes popped open. Skipper's flipper caressed down to her waist, to her hip… then to her butt!

"SKIPPER!!!" she screamed as she shoved him away. "Watch where you put your flippers!!!"

Skipper frowned for a moment, but then he regained his warm smile, "Sorry about that, I couldn't help myself. You just look incredible on this fine morning."

"That's still no excuse!"

"Alright, I apologize. That was rather ungentlemanly of me."

Marlene cocked a brow, "Shouldn't you be working today anyway?"

"What for? So I can go back to my boring self and never see you smile like that at me again? Double negative! I've done a lot of thinking Marlene. And I've decided that you've got my undivided attention, as well as you've got my heart."

"Uh… oh…"

Did he just tell her-?

Suddenly he wrapped his flipper around her shoulder.

"So why don't we head over to the cafeteria and grab a bit of breakfast, doll face? Then we can probably catch a movie in Alice's office. I made sure she couldn't go back to interrupt our movie date…"

"Really? What did you do?"

Suddenly Marlene noticed a wild pack of spider monkeys tearing up the zoo with their madness! Then she spotted Alice frantically waving a large net, trying to capture the loose apes. "I got ya! Get back here!" She kept screaming and slapping the net against the concrete, missing her target. Marlene's eye twitched at the sight.

"C'mon, while we're still young!" Skipper exclaimed as he lifted Marlene into bridal style.

Marlene smiled nervously, but this certainly didn't feel right all of a sudden.

* * *

"Alright, Rico, just relax," assured Kowalski as he pulled his safety goggles over his eyes.

Private watched nervously as Kowalski pushed a button that sent Rico on a conveyer belt into the round machine. The machine looked like an oven with the smart talking toy for a computer. Young Private chattered as he put his flippers over his beak.

"Are you sure it's safe?" he asked timidly.

"We're about to find out," Kowalski replied as he pushed several buttons starting up the machine with Rico inside.

Rico darted his eyes all around at the ominous, blue glow of the inside of the machine with a childish grin. The chances that this experiment can go haywire didn't seem to bother him at all.

"Just hold still," called Kowalski.

"Uh huh," nodded Rico, still smiling.

"Now, let's take a look inside Rico's mind," said Kowalski, pushing a couple more buttons.

Private chattered as he covered his eyes, "Tell me what happens…"

Suddenly Marlene climbed down the ladder from the hatch at that moment and stood there with a peculiar look at the sight. The machine suddenly shook and the whole HQ eventually began to tremble as well.

"That's not good," muttered Kowalski. "Shutting down the main-"

_KABOOM_! The machine coughed out thick, black smoke. Even Marlene had to cover her eyes and nose from the harsh blast of smog. Everyone began to cough and fan out the smoke. Kowalski pushed a button that removed Rico from the machine. He lied there motionless on the conveyer belt covered with black smog, and _still_ wearing a childish grin on his face. Kowalski rushed over to him.

"Speak to me, man!" he exclaimed as he loomed over.

Rico coughed up smoke.

"_Buttons_!" he squealed and lied back with his tongue hanging from his beak.

"Whew," Kowalski sighed of relief. "He's alright."

"So was it a success?" asked Private.

Rico and the conveyer belt suddenly crashed down, and a piece of the machine from the back fell apart.

"That's a negative," Kowalski shook his head.

"Hey guys," piped Marlene still fanning away a bit of the smoke. "What exactly are you doing?"

"That's confidential information," replied Kowalski as he removed his goggles.

"Yup," nodded Private. "That way Skipper won't know that we're building him a CAT scan machine to see if he's sick so we cure whatever's wrong with him."

"Private!"

"Yeah, there definitely is something wrong with him," agreed Marlene. "He's been acting… well, unusual… in a bad way."

"Like how so?" asked Private.

"Well, all I can say is that he's been… um, uh…" she couldn't understand why it was somewhat uncomfortable to tell him, probably because she knew he was young… and probably because she couldn't believe it herself either. "Call me crazy, but I think he's acting really… flirty…"

"I think that theory has already been established," nodded Kowalski.

"Yeah, but now it's getting a little outta hand. I mean, I don't mind him being fun and nice. But… let's just say I'd wish he can mind his own flippers!"

Kowalski tapped his bottom beak, trying to compute what she was trying to convey. Finally it hit him.

"Oh…" his eyes widened. "He's beginning to consort to-"

Marlene shrugged, "Well, not really, just once… I mean, it's not a big deal… well it is, but, you know… ugh!" Marlene could feel herself blushing, the thought of Skipper doing what he did made her feel tingly… but she couldn't tell if it was in a good way or not! Kowalski caught this and his face looked even more dumbstruck.

"Do you _really_ mind it?" he dared.

Marlene blushed even more, "I don't know!"

Kowalski eyes popped into shock as he stepped back a little from her. Private had never felt any more confused about anything!

"It doesn't matter what I want about that!" she shouted. "I just want to know what made him turn this way!"

"We don't know either, Marlene," Private shook his head.

"We're doing everything we can to uncover the cause of this misfortunate turn of events," nodded Kowalski.

"Well you better," nodded Marlene and turned away, feeling slightly guilty for snapping at them the way she did.

"By the way, where's Skipper?" asked Private.

Marlene turned around, "Waiting for me at the bathroom. I guess he still thinks I'm in there, so I gotta get back. In the meantime, you know what to do."

"Will do, Marlene," Kowalski nodded.

"You don't have to ask us twice," added Private.

Suddenly Rico sat up and smiled widely, waving his flipper and grunting that he can be counted on as well.

Marlene blinked and then smiled. She turned around and scurried back to get to Skipper. But with every pace she took, she couldn't help but wonder what Skipper could possibly do next.

"Kowalski," began Private, when they Marlene had gone. "What did Skipper consort to towards Marlene?"

Kowalski's eyes widened, "Um, er… well, why don't we focus on helping Rico first? And let's just hope that Skipper doesn't consort to anything harmful."

Private nodded and together they waddled back to the smoky Rico.


	6. Chapter 6

The moon set high in the sky looming over the zoo. Except for a few tiny clouds it was a clear and crisp night. While all the zoo inhabitants were preparing to sleep soundly in the calm night, Skipper waddled dreamily (practically dancing) throughout his path. It was sure enough he was in love. He twirled and hummed a rhythmic tune. He leapt onto a light post and swung around it, still humming and sighing dreamily.

At that moment, Kowalski popped out from the hatch from the HQ. He scanned the area, looking for Skipper, until he finally spotted him at the post. He cringed at the sight and gulped.

"Oh good golly," he muttered. "The _horror_."

He got down to his belly and rushed over to his somewhat disoriented leader. Once Kowalski reached the lamp post, he looked up at love struck Skipper.

"Skipper, shouldn't you return back to base?" Kowalski asked.

"In a minute, Kowalski," Skipper replied, still swinging. "Doesn't the night look glamorous to you?"

"Um… it seems nice…" Finally Skipper hopped down from the lamp and turned to his teammate. "Skipper, I have a reminder that tomorrow is maintenance duty, so I suggest you get some rest."

"Maintenance? Ah well, I'm sure you and the boys back home can finish the job on your own."

"So… you won't be joining us?"

Skipper put a flipper on Kowalski's shoulder, "I'd love to join you fellas, but I'd really like to get to Marlene tomorrow."

"Um, _again_, Skipper?"

"I told ya, didn't I? I'm making this my personal mission to make Marlene all mine. And I think I'm just getting closer and closer to her."

"So I've heard…" muttered Kowalski.

Suddenly sighed, "But y'know, Kowalski, I'm starting to get the feeling that our relationship isn't getting any faster."

Kowalski blinked, "… relationship?"

"I'm head-over-heels for the dame. But I don't how anymore I can prove it to her how much she means to me. I want to show her my love and more, but I can't seem to figure out the riddle."

Kowalski was completely speechless, are his ears (if he had any) deceiving him???

"That is until moments ago!" cheered Skipper.

Kowalski cocked a brow and tilted his head to the side.

"While we were watching the movie, I could've sworn I heard her sigh and snuggle up against me when the family scene came on."

"Family scene?" asked Kowalski.

"Affirmative. Y'know, a scene where the family spends a Christmas together and the parents are kissing under the mistletoe while the kiddies play under the tree?"

Kowalski's eye began to twitch; he knew if Rico was here right, he'd be upchucking everything he had in his gut uncontrollably like a garden hose!

"She looked up at me with her cute smile, blushing, and then turned away. I tell ya that killed me a little inside. I just can't get enough of her smile."

"Skipper," began Kowalski.

"Wait, just a minute, you'll get your chance to talk! So I think I've got just the thing to… _spice_ things up."

Skipper thought it over in his head with a dreamy yet sly smile. After a while, Kowalski finally caught on he was up to something.

"What are you thinking?" Kowalski cautiously asked.

"I'm thinking…" Skipper began as he waddled away from the penguin habitat. "I'll be seeing you tomorrow."

With that, he slid on his belly and took off to the otter habitat. Kowalski stood there dazed, trying to contemplate if he should go after him. Heck, he wasn't even sure if all that happened just a moment ago was real or not. The poor guy was left dumbstruck.

"This may definitely not be good," he said to himself.

He was about to take off after him, until suddenly he felt shaking underneath him and he could hear electricity blowing up!

"Kowalski!" Private cried from the open hatch. "I don't think the machine's supposed to be making that noise!"

Kowalski immediately took off to help the others with their machine problem. _Note to self; never leave the stove on unattended_, he thought to himself.

* * *

Marlene swam for a bit in the cool waters of her pond. Eventually, she left the water and shook her fur dry. She looked up at the sky and sighed. It was a nice night. Then she began to reminisce the day. They did exactly what Skipper had planned for the day. The lunch was fantastic; and they ended up watching two movies… and a half. Alice had returned in the middle of the last one, and Marlene couldn't shake off the event that happened after that.

_When they heard footsteps coming, Skipper motioned for her to follow him. They both scurried quickly into the closet, just before Alice entered the room. She was extremely exhausted from all the chasing and catching she had to do. Then she caught the TV on. She scratched her head in confusion. "I don't remember leaving the TV on," she had said. She approached it to turn it off until she realized a love scene was on. She shrugged and sat into a chair and stared into the screen. Marlene peered through a crack on the door to see if Alice had noticed them but it was obvious she was distracted at the moment. Come to think of it, Marlene became distracted herself!_

_ Coincidentally the main characters were locked up in the closet as well hiding from someone Marlene hadn't paid enough attention to know from who. The female looked worried, but the male character held her close to him to comfort her. Then the male character pressed his girl's head against his chest. Then the two looked at each other, almost tenderly and lovingly. Marlene thought it was a sweet scene…until she realized her head was also pressed against Skipper's chest! She could feel the chills and her heart began to race. He caressed her head lovingly, making her blood turn cold and an extremely heated blush appeared on her face. _

_ "Kinda dark in here," whispered Skipper. Marlene's eyes widened. "And it looks like a kissing scene's about to come on…"_

_ Marlene looked up at Skipper, as he wore a cool yet gentle smile on his beak. She couldn't believe this was happening! She wanted to run away from this, but Skipper had her pressed against him, his strength made sure she couldn't escape. She pulled gently away, but she was slightly hesitant at the same time! Why?! _

_ "No need to be so nervous, babe," he whispered gently- almost seductively. "Just relax. You know you're safe with me…"_

_ Marlene's heart raced even faster! This was very unexpecting. She had to get out of there! This was insane! She had to be nuts to go through with this. At the same time… she actually wanted this… Gradually, she stopped resisting, and she let her heart at ease. Suddenly her eyes drooped and she saw Skipper's eyes close and he began to lean forward. She couldn't make herself lean in though. She was still hesitant… but this felt so nice… Oh, who was she kidding?! _Kiss me already! _She nearly screamed in her head. His beak was nearly touching hers, and she could smell his partly fishy breath (she didn't seem to mind it at all) and she slowly puckered her lips. Slowly… slowly… closer… almost…_

_ "Jeez, we won't get to it at this rate," Skipper suddenly shook his head. _

_ Then he suddenly twirled her to one side, dipped her gently yet swiftly, and smooched against her lips. This caught her by complete, total, utter surprise. She grabbed hold around his neck to keep herself from falling, but in the process it also pressed herself and her lips tighter against him. She was wide-eyed at first, but immediately she shut her eyes and enjoyed the sweet passion. Everything felt so right and so blissful. Skipper even pressed Marlene's neck tighter, craving for a deeper kiss. Marlene could feel his beak slightly open, so she began to open hers a little, following his lead. This had to be the most sensual and beautiful moment of their entire lives…_

BOOM! _Marlene hadn't realized they were leaning in too close to a broom that it eventually tipped over and slammed against the door! Skipper and Marlene were caught in such a surprise, they fell over! Luckily they tumbled into a fallen coat, so when Alice turned around at the closet, they were too hidden to be caught. They pretty much laid there a little shaken, until Alice finally turned off the TV, picked up the broom and shoved it back into the closet. She slammed the door, leaving the two animals in the dark._

_ "Maybe we should go," Marlene said. _

Marlene opened her eyes, and she realized she was lying down on her bunk bed. She was so lost in her thoughts; she didn't even notice she had moved from outside back to inside! She blinked and sat up. It was nice and all… but that was it! It was very romantic, so romantic that she couldn't believe it actually happened! She could feel herself blushing and she smiled. There was a vase of flowers across the room so she got up and plucked one out. She petted its smooth petals and she even took a whiff of it. She smiled as she exhaled with please.

"I never thought this could go so perfectly," she said to herself.

She looked down at her blue flower and smiled. But suddenly her smile shrunk to a frown. It had been several days Skipper spent time with her, but hardly any time with the team. When she had snuck out after her moment with Skipper, she remembered the sad and worried looks on the other penguins' faces. It saddened her to see them that way. Maybe she should let him know that he needs to return back to the team sometime. It's nice to spend so much time with him. But he should uphold his duties as well right? Suddenly her face lit up as she took in the full meaning of it all. Her grip on the flower tightened. Are they _really_… are they _actually_… _dating_? Is it official? The question hadn't really crossed her mind to actually ask! But the thought made her blush! He's practically confessing his thoughts and feelings to her… they kissed in the closet… are there any special rules to make a couple "official?" She cringed at the thought. How could she be so clueless about these things? How could _he_ be so blunt about it? She sighed as she walked over to her bunk and lied there. Maybe a goodnight's rest should do the trick for now until she could sort things out. 


	7. Chapter 7

_Knock, knock!_ Marlene's eyes popped open. She sat up and turned to the entrance. She had no door, but someone was still knocking? She caught a glimpse of a shadow stirring there. She yawned, got out of bed, and approached the entrance. She stood there, rubbing her eyes, still pretty tired.

"Hello?" she called. "Anyone there?"

She looked around, unable to find anyone out there. _I must've dreamt it or something_, she decided in her thoughts. She shrugged and turned around to get back to bed. Suddenly, she could hear a whirl and a stomp from behind her. She flinched and turned around.

"_Hello_, Marlene," greeted Skipper.

"What? Was that you the whole time?" she asked.

"Who else were you expecting?"

She rolled her eyes… point taken.

"Well, anyways, Skipper, it's late and I _really_ want to get to bed."

She yawned and rubbed her eyes again, but when she put her paws back to her sides, her eyes popped wide open. Skipper ripped out two large leaves… and started dancing erotically! He wiggled his hips with his back towards her; as if he wanted to make sure she had a good look there. Then he turned around and shook his shoulders in a rhythmic movement and waving the leaves around. Marlene blinked nervously and stood there dazed! What is he doing?! He wore a mischievous and seductive smile as he approached her, still dancing sensually. Marlene took a few steps back.

"Skipper what the heck do you think you're doing???" she asked almost in horror.

"You looked a little sleepy," he replied innocently, tossing the leaves and still approaching her in a dance. "So I thought I should perk you up a little before we step inside…"

"What? Uh… um, this isn't the best time for a visit."

"Sure it is!" he exclaimed as he was now face to face with Marlene. "The night's still young; you have me all to yourself…" Suddenly he lifted her in bridal style again. "And I've got _you_ all to myself."

"Yeah… about that. I'm not sure I'm actually comfortable with this."

"C'mon, where's all the fun gone?"

Then he carried her inside and twirled her around as he did. They stepped inside and he continued to twirl her a little around the room. Eventually he set her down, but when he did she stumbled in her steps a little. Not just because she was dizzy from the spinning, but she was still somewhat sleepy, and she was _mortified_ that this was happening. Suddenly she felt Skipper reach around her waist and she was suddenly pulled away, dipped down again just like in the closet, staring right up into Skipper's eyes.

"So, where were we?" he asked suggestively with a sly smile.

"Whoa, whoa! Wait a minute!" exclaimed Marlene as she pushed herself and him up. "Listen, I think we're going too fast. I'm not even sure if we're _dating_ yet."

"Of course we are."

"We are?!"

"Well, it's been a while, Marlene." Marlene's eyes darted around the room nervously. "Boy Marlene, for a gal who likes to have fun, you sure are a little slow to notice these things."

Marlene growled, "It's not that at all! It's just that… you never said anything about us!"

"Sure I did."

"Huh?"

"Y'know," he approached her slowly. "The lunches, the fun, the sunset… the closet… the list goes on."

"You could've been a little more considerate about these things; you've got a beak to talk with y'know!"

"My, my, Marlene…"

"What?" she stepped back again, when she realized he was getting too close to her.

"If I didn't know you any better, I'd say you're looking pretty nervous right about now."

"N-no, well, uh… kinda?" She continued to step back, and he continued to follow her.

"And look at that, you're blushing."

"Me? Blushing? Ha! You're crazy!"

Suddenly her back was pressed against the wall, and he was still coming closer! She's never felt so cornered from anyone before! Her pulse raced, and she could swear she could hear her own rapid heartbeat- and she was blushing like crazy! What the heck?! This is no time to romanticize! Suddenly, Skipper put his flipper on the wall beside her and leaned close. Marlene pressed herself tighter against the wall, as if somehow she'll gain tangibility and seep through it.

"Gosh, Marlene, I just want to hold a mirror up in front of you so you can see how adorable you look right now. The way you blush really makes your eyes look brighter like flames of passion." Marlene blinked, very unsure what to say or do. "It makes your muzzle look whiter too; your lips look like vanilla ice cream from here, so creamy…" He licked his beak noisily in a "_tip, tip_" rhythm. "And tasty..." Marlene darted her eyes at her arm reaching for something. "Looks like this sweet treat's staring up at me. Almost begging…"

"You're nuts," she whispered, still working her arm out.

"Nuts about you…"

They stared down at each other; Skipper's expression however looked hungry, and Marlene could just tell he was ready to take bites from her. Now what?! Suddenly she grabbed what she was aiming for- a plastic bat- and swung it to the air! She held it high, but when she saw Skipper dart up at it, she swung it down- _WHACK!!!_ Skipper looked at Marlene wide-eyed, almost shocked and confused. Suddenly Marlene stepped away from the spot and stumbled, very much disoriented, waving herself around and staggering. She hit a number on her head! Skipper rushed over to her before she fell to the ground. He held her; still with wide eyes and trying to figure out why she'd hit herself. Eventually her eyes fluttered open, looking up at four Skippers! No wait, two… okay, just one.

"You alright there?" he asked, looking worried.

Marlene smiled at the sight; _there_ was the "normal" Skipper, right?

"Yeah, I think so," she sighed while rubbing her head.

"Good."

Suddenly he swept her up to her feet and held her up by the shoulders, waiting for her to regain control of her legs. Once she did, he helped her back to bed. She sat at the edge, rubbing her head and smiling. She really thought she brought Skipper back. He wasn't acting seductive anymore!

"How do you feel?" she asked suddenly.

"Me?" Skipper asked confused. "You hit yourself on your head! Why'd you do that?"

Marlene looked up at him, "I thought it was just a dream I needed to wake up from…"

Skipper blinked. "So… you don't love me?"

Marlene's face lit up! Did he just ask-?

"What? No! I mean, it's not that."

"Then what is it?"

"It's just… well; I think we're going too fast. I think we should take a little more of our time… and…" Then she remembered what she had been thinking about earlier. "And that maybe, you should go back to your team."

"What? You don't want me around anymore?"

"No it's not that either! Actually… I…"

Marlene could feel herself blushing, and she felt as if she was in a suspense movie. She could hear her own heartbeat, and it seemed to echo throughout the room. She gulped and drew her breath.

"I think I might actually want this…" she murmured. "I… I think I… might too…"

"Might what?"

She gulped, "… l-lo… _love_… you too…"

Skipper blinked, then after a while, his beak immediately turned into a wide grin. Suddenly, almost like a pounce, he threw himself around her in a hug! Oh gosh, what now?

"Marlene, I'm head-over-heels for ya!" he began. "I'd give the world to ya, and give everything I have just to show how much I love you! I've never felt this way about anyone! I've never… I've never… I've never felt so much desire before…"

Marlene blushed like crazy, and she found herself hugging him back. She had no idea whether to accept this as the greatest moment of her life… or the most shocking! It seemed too good to be true!

"Marlene," he suddenly blurted. "Remember that movie where the parents were kissing under the mistletoe and the kiddies playing under the tree?"

Where was he going with this? "Y-yeah… sure, I guess…"

Suddenly, he moved his flippers down to her hips and pulled her down suddenly until she was under him and he was above her.

"So what are we waiting for?" he asked seductively, with his sly smile and his drooped, hungry eyes! Again! Oh no, he wasn't thinking about _that_!

"WAIT!!!" she screamed trying to shove him off, but he seemed locked on top of her! "Stop, this isn't like you!!!"

"I know it seems like it," he replied hungrily, almost desperately. "But I can't stand being away from this any longer!" Suddenly he smooched Marlene's cheek as he cuddled against her. "I love you, and I'll make sure you'll be mine for good!"

He cuddled and continued kissing her neck and cheek, until he reached her lips and pressed himself against her, with one flipper pressing her hip against him and the other flipper caressing Marlene's arm. This. Was. Very. VERY. Wrong! And she needed to get out! With her hind legs, she pushed managed to push him off, but he continued to resist it. This had to end.

"Stop! Get off! Let go!" she muffled against Skipper's beak. She had enough. "I said GET OFF!!!"

She smacked him across the face and kicked him off until she was free and she ran on four legs across the room. She stopped and looked back at him. He looked at her hurt by her action. But it didn't take him long to gain his cocky smile again… a little creepy-looking now!

"Playing hard to get?" he smiled playfully.

"You're outta your MIND!!!" she screamed angrily.

"C'mon, where's your sense of fun?"

"There's no fun in this, Skipper!"

"C'mon, you know you want this as much as I do."

"But it's too soon!" Suddenly she slapped her paws over her mouth. Skipper eyes drooped and kept his smile, as if he won an argument. Marlene blushed. "So?! It doesn't matter! This is still out of line!"

"I don't care. I love you, and one way or another; I _will_ get what I want from you." Marlene's mouth swung open appalled, and her eye began to twitch. "I'm trying to reason with you, Marlene. But now it seems too long and boring…"

"What are you saying?"

"It just looks like I'll have to do this by force," his brows furrowed, with crazy, hungry eyes, and his devious smile.

"Hehe, yeah …about that," Marlene smiled nervously, then- _ZOOM_! She was gone!

Skipper's face lit up in surprise; that was too quick! He quickly left Marlene's little home and stood at the entrance scanning for Marlene. She had already left the habitat! He hopped on the brick wall and peered over. Suddenly he caught a quick glimpse of Marlene's tail slip behind the wall of the elephant exhibit. Skipper smiled, very impressed with her speed and agility.

"You can run and hide all you want," he murmured to himself. "But when I'm assigned on a mission, I always manage to keep my word." He leaped off the fence and stood on the concrete in his military stance. "For a mission accomplished."


	8. Chapter 8

Kowalski set the headband-looking machine around Rico's head and tied it down, making sure that no matter what happened, it wouldn't topple over. Rico didn't seem to mind it as he sat there patiently on a chair.

"I do apologize for using you for these experiments," said Kowalski, still screwing a few nuts and bolts in the headband.

"Uh uh," Rico shook his head.

Kowalski turned the last screw with his screwdriver.

"There, that should do it," announced the penguin.

"I don't like the looks of this," pointed out Private. "What if this time Rico really does get hurt."

"I'm afraid we're left with no other option but to try," he replied as he put back on his goggles. "Besides, I strongly believe that this would be the final experiment I've planned before we could finally cure Skipper."

Rico reached his flipper to touch the machine out of curiosity, but when he poked at a green light bulb- _ZAP_! Rico yelped and shot his flipper into his beak.

"Easy now," comforted Kowalski as he stood, holding up a remote that used to be for a toy car. "Now activating the main power core."

Kowalski flipped on a couple of switches, and the light bulbs began to glow bright. Rico blinked at the sound of electricity crackling. Private stood beside Kowalski with his own pair of goggles, nervously and anxiously wondering if this would a success.

"Now engaging energy levels."

He turned a dial slightly to the side.

"Um, Kowalski," began Private. "Exactly what does this machine do?"

Suddenly Kowalski looked up from the remote and turned towards him.

"Actually," began Kowalski slightly sheepishly until more electricity began popping from the machine.

Suddenly Rico began jiggling and shivering and his eyes popped open. He shook up and down, grunting "_Brrr,"_ to the vibrations. Before anything else could happen, Kowalski turned down the dial and immediately flipped the switches to shut it off. The two penguins rushed over to Rico and looked down on him worriedly.

"Rico?" asked Private.

Rico shook his head, spilling his drool everywhere. Then he looked up at his teammates with a smile.

"Woo hoo!" he exclaimed, then clapped his flippers gleefully.

"Well, did it work?" asked Private.

"Technically speaking, no," Kowalski shook his head.

"Well what was it for?"

"It was supposed to detect any illness in the brain, and then zap it away once detected. But by the looks of Rico…" Rico continued to clap and giggle, then after a while he stuck his flipper on the light bulb again, only to get shocked again. But it looked like he wasn't hurt because he actually continued to clap and cheer to it! "I don't suspect any changes…"

"Poor Skipper," began Private. "Maybe it's best if we just accepted that Skipper's gone and doesn't need us anymore…"

"Now don't speak of such nonsense," assured Kowalski as he put a flipper on Private's shoulder.

"But you said so yourself, he won't even lead us for another maintenance duty! And he's already given us so many days off. It doesn't look like wants to be with us anymore."

Even Rico stopped his fun for the moment and grumbled sadly and drooped at the words.

"Not for long. I vow to find the resolution, for Skipper's sake. I'm sure deep down that he's in need and is counting on us to rescue him."

"I hope you're right, Kowalski. Well, I'm sure you're right, you always are!"

"Exactly."

Suddenly at that moment, one of the light bulbs on the headband popped. Rico blinked as he watched the tiny pieces fall. Rico chuckled and smiled at his teammates.

"I'll be making something to drown my sorrows now," said Private sadly and waddled to the fridge to begin his search for a treat to calm his nerves.

Kowalski sighed and approached Rico to remove the headband. He unbuckled the helmet and he pulled it off his head. Suddenly thumping could be heard, echoing throughout the room. The penguins stopped what they were doing and darted around the room to find the source.

"Quick, men! Evasive maneuvers!" exclaimed Kowalski and immediately all three penguins huddled together in their military stances.

They continued scanning their base, until Rico grunted and pointed at Private's First Prize fish. The other two turned towards it and stood there, bracing themselves for anything. Suddenly the prize swung open and out popped a big, brown ball of fur! They stood back a few inches, until they recognized who it was as it lay there before them.

"Marlene?" asked Private. "What on earth are you doing here?"

Suddenly Marlene darted up immediately, shot her paws out, and grabbed Private's face.

"You! Have GOT! To HELP me!" she nearly roared between breaths.

"What happened?" squeaked Private with his eyes wide open in fear.

He's never seen Marlene look so desperate and angry… and scared? All wrapped into one was very strange… and scary…

"Skipper has OFFICIALLY gone _crazy_!" she nearly hissed through grinding teeth.

"Care to explain?" asked Kowalski cautiously.

Suddenly she darted at him, and then pulled him in until her eyeballs were touching his.

"He. Tried. To…" she began, but then whispered the rest of her sentence, so Private wouldn't hear.

Kowalski's eyes lit up, and then his eyes and beak twitched in horror.

"WHOA MAMA, GOOD GOLLY WHOLLY!!!" he panicked as he pulled away. "That is just the most crude and just… I'm so sorry."

"And right now, he's still after me! I don't know where else to go. I don't know any other safer place in this whole zoo. And there's no one else I can count on to be safe! I mean… for crying out loud, it used to be Skipper!!!"

She shivered in fear and she clasped her paws on her cold cheeks. Suddenly she blinked when she realized she had said the wrong thing. She looked at the other penguins, hoping they didn't catch what she meant. They simply looked at her blankly, yet practically awes-struck at the same time.

"Just!" she growled as she clenched her paws and teeth. "Tell me you've found out what's wrong with him?"

"Negative," Kowalski shook his head. "But by your… er… _graphic_ description of his behavior. I will conclude that this is definitely an unnatural obsession that must be resolved as soon as possible."

Marlene shook her head, signaling she couldn't understand what he had just said.

"He's definitely crazy and we have to stop him," he blankly "translated" his last statement.

Private waddled over to Marlene, "It'll all be alright, Marlene. You'll see."

"I hope so, Private," she replied softly. "And I'm sorry I'm freaking out on you guys like this."

"It's no trouble," smiled Kowalski. Even Rico nodded his head with a smile.

"Now why don't I serve you some of my sardine smoothies!" exclaimed Private. "That'll be sure to lift our spirits."

"I guess that'll be nice," she smiled.

With that Private returned to the blender and stuffed it with a couple of sardines, mixed it up with a push of a button, and pulled out cups to fill them with.

"Woops, silly me," he chuckled. "I nearly forgot the soy sauce."

He went back to the fridge and scavenged for the missing ingredient. The others were circled around Marlene. At this time, Kowalski had even taken the liberty to tell Rico what Marlene had told him. Rico sat there expressionless. Even after a moment of no reaction, he pulled a paper bag and puked harshly.

"I hope this won't affect Rico's eating pattern," said Kowalski worriedly. Suddenly he spotted Private pouring in the soy sauce bottle into the blender. "Stop, Private!!!" Private cringed and stopped immediately. Kowalski rushed over to him and snatched the bottle away.

"What's wrong?" Private asked.

"That's not soy sauce! That's my experimental Project: A1-709!"

"Um… a what?"

"It's a love serum I was working on the other day. And it's a very dangerous substance. I miscalculated its hormonal power and why just _think_ of the consequences and-" He paused abruptly, and suddenly everything that was once topsy-turvy was suddenly snapped right back into place! Of course! And oh no. He turned to Private. "Private, you didn't happen to put some of this in your smoothie, have you?"

Private shrugged, "I can't remember." Than after a pause. "Ah! Oh yes, I remember putting some soy sauce into the smoothies the other day. Frankly on the day Skipper went crazy…"

The whole room turned quiet as everyone realized the answer. Suddenly the silence was broken by the sound of hissing. Private and Kowalski's eyes scanned around for the source. Private looked to the ceiling, then to the floor, and then to the stove. It sounded like the tea kettle was almost done, but… they didn't have a tea kettle. Suddenly Private looked at Kowalski, but he was surprised to see Kowalski's eyes locked on Rico. Private turned to Rico and gasped when he saw the look of fear and confusion on his face. Rico was looking right into Marlene's face… and she was trembling like crazy! Heck, you could almost see the steam soaring above her head! Suddenly Marlene turned around at Kowalski- with absolute fury and rage burning in her eyes!

"N-now Marlene," began Kowalski as he took a few steps back. "Let's just take a moment to _calm down_… and find the resolution together."

Marlene got up and marched towards Kowalski. Private just stood there with his flippers over his beak at the sight. She was certainly fired up now!

"How could I _possibly_ team up with you to find the _resolution_ if it was YOU who caused this problem in the first place!!!? AGAIN!!!"

"Mar- Marlene… let's not do anything hasty," Kowalski panicked still stepping backwards away from the angry otter. "Wait, Marlene, Marlene! What are you- wait! GAH!!!"

Private shut his eyes and turned away, not wanting to see the violence. The room began to quiver by the vibrations of the vicious beating Marlene was giving Kowalski! Rico simply sat there, cocking his head to the side. He wasn't sure if he should do something about this… it actually looked kinda cool.

"No not there! OW! Stop! Rico!!!" cried Kowalski. Rico stood up alert. "Do something! Don't just sit there!"

"Er…" Rico grumbled as he approached the two, dashing side to side, wondering what he should. He watched the two squabble, and finally Marlene locked Kowalski's neck in her arm, practically strangling him now! Rico blinked, he wasn't so sure if he should knock her out first, or just try to separate the two. Finally he shot himself at Marlene and shoved her to the side. He continued to struggle with Marlene, pressing his weight against her, trying to pin her to the floor. She continued to kick and scream and squirm.

"Wait 'til I get my paws on you, you little-!!!" she roared, clawing at the ground and Rico still on top of her. He wrapped his flippers her shoulder, making sure it wouldn't give her a chance to escape. She squirmed and growled, and Rico was already giving his all to keep her down! He never thought an otter could ever be this strong!

_BANG!!!_ The door burst open. Everyone was startled by the sound and shot their attention to the doorway. There stood Skipper in his military stance and his determined expression. Suddenly his face turned into a shocked expression. He was looking at Rico from behind, but he still could see Rico was lying right on top of Marlene, still with his flippers wrapped around her shoulders. This certainly didn't look right…

"WHAT THE DEUCE IS GOING ON HERE!!!?" Skipper roared.

"Er…" grumbled Rico, what was he supposed to do or say (if he could)?

"Get off her!!!" he snapped and literally kicked him off her.

Rico flew across the room and practically splat against the only window in their base. Kowalski and Private looked at poor Rico, then back at their crazed leader.

"How could you?!" Skipper spat. "I trusted you like a brother!" Then he turned to Marlene still lying on the floor. "And _you_! Why would you do this to me?!"

"Uh, what?" exclaimed Marlene.

"You can't go on two-timing me, ever!"

"You're crazy! I'm not two-timing anyone! This is all a misunderstanding!"

"The only one misunderstanding me here is my team," he growled and darted his attention to the other penguins.

They trembled and were shocked by his reaction. Eventually Rico scraped off the window and landed back on his feet dazed. Skipper's expression turned to a very furious and ticked-off expression. Things weren't looking too good.

"You men outta be ashamed of yourselves!" he spat. "You can't betray a friend like this." Suddenly he inched closer and cracked his flippers like knuckles. His dark aura could practically be seen swirling around him. "Now that you've rolled the dice, you've gotta pay the price…"

"Skipper?" squeaked Private.

The next thing they knew, Skipper pounced on them, and began his thrashing against them! Marlene looked on in horror; she couldn't believe how Skipper was so blinded by the serum that he was even willing to hurt his own teammates for her! What has she done! Or what have they done! Is there anyone to blame here??? The entire room was filled with yelps and screams of terror and pain, things breaking and… was that the sound of a bone snapping?! Suddenly Marlene spotted Kowalski crawling weakly up towards her. Before he could reach her, he collapsed. He had already taken a lot of damage from Marlene's beating; it was uncertain if he could keep it up any longer! He was badly bruised and already had a black eye. Jeez! Marlene had beaten him up, sure, but not so much to actually _scar_ the poor guy for life!

"Marlene," he coughed. "Run. Just leave while you can."

"To where?" she shrieked. "I can't get to anywhere without you guys! I can't just abandon you."

"Don't worry," Kowalski coughed. "About us, alright? Just… go to a place where Skipper wouldn't expect to find you."

Marlene paused and thought it over. Her face lit up, but then looked back down on Kowalski. "What about you guys?"

"Don't mind us, we'll hold him off as much as we can. Then when he's calmed down, I'll get to work on an antidote to cure the love sickness."

Marlene shook her head, "Just be careful."

"Affirmative. Besides, this is what Skipper had trained us for; we'll do the best we can. Now go! Once he finds you, you might not be able to escape his wrath."

Marlene nodded and scurried away as fast as she could. She felt guilty, but what else could she do? Kowalski eventually struggled to get on his feet and turned around.

"Alright, Skipper. I never wanted to hurt you, but if this is the only way you- GAH!!!"

Suddenly he was pulled right into the battle by Skipper's anger! He grabbed him by the feet and spun him fiercely until he finally tossed him against the wall! Kowalski crashed, leaving a deep dent against the wall that it even sprung a leak! It wasn't too bad, but it was there. Then he fell from the wall and joined the pile of his other defeated comrades. Skipper towered over them, with his alpha posture and angry eyes.

"Next time, I won't go so easy on you knuckle heads," he threatened. "That's what you get for mutiny."

Suddenly he waddled over to Rico, the poor penguin lying there with his tongue hanging out of his beak and badly bruised. Skipper stomped his foot on Rico's gut, forcing a flashlight out of him.

"With Marlene's shiny coat to reflect the light, it shouldn't be so hard to find her in the dark," he said before he waddled towards the exit and left his team behind.

The poor gang lied there helplessly, yet despite everything, they were hoping that Marlene would be okay too. Who would've thought a love-struck penguin could be so dangerous?!


	9. Chapter 9

Marlene huffed and puffed, running as fast as her feet could take her. She scurried to an abandoned popcorn stand machine and hopped in. Alone inside she tried to ease her breathing, afraid that it might echo out and give away her location to Skipper. She needed time to think and rest. _Go to a place where Skipper will never expect to find you_, Marlene thought over. _But I need to lay low for a while. I need to make sure he won't find me. Just long enough 'til Kowalski makes an antidote_.

Once she was certain her breathing slowed, she stuck her head out the small door she had entered. She looked around carefully yet quickly. She wanted to make absolutely sure he wasn't there. Suddenly she heard something! Immediately she poked her head back in and shut the door without a sound. Her heart raced and she could feel herself shivering as she pressed her back against the wall opposite the door. Then she heard the sound again, like if something was… sliding. _Swish_. It was inching nearer, and luckily Marlene didn't need to poke her head out to know what was making that noise.

Outside sure enough, Skipper slid passed by on his belly. Then he got up on his two feet and scanned the area. He pulled out his flashlight and switched it on, sweeping the light around. Marlene gulped and tried to fight the anxiety to take another peek outside. She knew Skipper would have the eyes of a hawk. She could almost envision the attack already; he'd pounce on her on sight! And the last thing she wanted was _that_ happening of all places… in a popcorn machine!

Suddenly she could hear him sliding right by her! Her heart beat faster, and she was afraid it would make too much noise and she'll be caught! Then the sliding stopped abruptly. And so did her breathing. It sounded too close. If only she knew what he was doing! The suspense was killing her! _BONG!_ Something crashed against the popcorn machine and Marlene bit down on her tongue to keep from screaming, she knew better than that after all. She's seen enough suspense movies to know what to do and what not to do. And it certainly didn't involve screaming.

Skipper had dashed behind the machine and he flashed his light around one more time. Then he turned it off immediately. "Hmm…" he rubbed his lower beak. Marlene nearly flinched at the sound of his voice. Yes, she was _that_ terrified of him now. Then she heard him sliding away. She still wasn't sure she should move yet. She wasn't even sure if she should breathe yet! It was quiet suddenly. What seemed like an hour later, she finally had enough courage to take a last look outside. She slowly opened the door just a little bit. Carefully leaning her head outside, _praying_ he wasn't still around. She looked around… the coast was clear. She finally relaxed herself; even her whiskers drooped a little.

"Why hello neighbor!"

"AHHH!!!!" Marlene screamed as she immediately pulled herself inside and slammed the door behind her.

"What is her problem?"

"Beats me."

"Well, I guess it is perfectly reasonable. My handsome self can make any female of any species shy with my… handsomeness."

Suddenly Marlene popped her head out when she realized whose voices they were.

"Julien! Maurice!" she exclaimed. "And Mort! Boy am I glad to see you guys!"

"Of course you are," smiled the lemur king cockily. "Who wouldn't be to see the royal me?"

Marlene ignored his arrogant remark and hopped out of the machine.

"What are you doing in there?" asked Maurice.

"I'm hiding, that's why," replied Marlene. "Listen I'd like to ask a _really_ big favor from you guys."

"Okay!" piped Mort happily.

"Mort, do not accept any favors without the king's royal approval," King Julien remarked while shaking a finger on Mort. "So exactly what kind of favor are you talking about that you speak off?"

"Like I said, I'm hiding," she explained. "From Skipper."

"Skipper? Why him?" asked Maurice.

"Ugh, it's a long story I can't explain yet. But right now it's _very _important he doesn't find me, and I was hoping if you guys could be so kind to give me a hiding spot in your habitat?"

"Oh, ho ho, is this a game of the hiding and the seeking?" King Julien lit up. "Ooo, can I play, too?" asked Mort excitedly.

"What? It's not a game!" retorted Marlene.

"I declare that we join as well!" King Julien announced shooting his finger to the sky triumphantly.

"Grrr, okay fine. You can play. But no matter what, you gotta make sure Skipper doesn't find me _at all_."

"Eh? And what makes _you_ the especicially one, huh?" the lemur leaned over until his eyes were directly into Marlene's.

Suddenly she clamped her paws onto the sides of his face and she nearly smashed his face against hers so their eyes were touching against each other.

"_Just do as I say, or I'll beat you to unconsciousness with your own CROWN!!!"_ she sneered through grinding teeth, her eyes flaming with anger.

"Em… are you threatening your king?!" he exclaimed trying to hide to hide the fear in his voice.

"_Yes!_" she snarled.

"Okay, then you have my permission stay in my royal kingdom for your little game."

* * *

Meanwhile Private tied the last bandage around Rico's head. Rico grunted quietly by the sting on his flipper now wrapped in a cast. Private was wearing a couple of bandages on his face and flippers, along with an ice bag tied to his head and back. They were trying to nurse their wounds, but they took quite a lot of damage.

"It'll all be okay, Rico," comforted Private. "Kowalski, are you finished?"

"Almost, Private," replied Kowalski, wearing an eye patch and a neck brace. He reached his flipper out for a chemical, and suddenly a snap could be heard. "D'oh!" He winced from the pain, then continued for the substance and poured a bit into a beaker containing the love serum, mixed with other chemicals.

"So what's the plan?" asked Private.

"It should be simple. We'll have to find Skipper and have him take this antidote, and then he should be cured soon after. But under our circumstances- ouch! - it might be rather difficult than it needs to be." He had turned to one side too quickly and felt the sting from his spine and neck.

"Whatever it takes," said Private. "We need to bring Skipper back."

"Uh huh, uh huh," Rico grumbled, nodding his head.

"And that's exactly what we'll do," said Kowalski adding the final touches into the beaker. Then he held the beaker up with pride. "There we have it!"

"Where's Marlene by the way?" asked Private.

"Unknown," he replied. "But knowing how- ow! - strong she is, I'm certain she's fine wherever she may be."

"Right! Let's hurry then!" exclaimed Private.

"_Yeah_!" grunted Rico in agreement.

* * *

"Are you sure this is a good hiding spot?" asked Marlene uncertainly.

"Of course, silly otter," replied King Julien. "No one will bother to look for you in here!"

Marlene felt really uncomfortable; she was actually stuffed inside a cupboard behind the counter of the snack bar. She barely fit inside, but she was somehow (well almost) convinced that Skipper wouldn't find her there.

"I really am brilliant, aren't I?" King Julien began. "I'm quite good at this game, if I do say so myself. I should be receiving an award for this."

Maurice rolled his eyes and approached Marlene, "Sorry, but space is kinda tight around here at the moment, so this'll just have to do."

"I guess so," replied Marlene, trying to feel a spot she felt the most comfortable as possible.

"Now try to keep quiet for… um, exactly how long are you planning to keep this up?"

"Just long enough for Kowalski to come up with a plan to get me outta this mess. Now close the doors before anyone sees."

Maurice shrugged and closed the cupboards, "See you 'til morning then."

Then he and King Julien walked away, with the king lemur still gloating at how "brilliant" his hiding spot choice was. Suddenly Marlene felt alone… and very uncomfortable. "_See you 'til morning_," the words rang in her head. _Until morning... how long is that?_ So much had happened in this single evening, so morning couldn't be that far, right? And she's certain that Kowalski and the others have the antidote ready to give. Maybe right now as she thinks of this they might've already found Skipper and they're reasoning him to take the antidote and then everything will all go back to normal and she could get out of this uncomfortable, dark, stuffy… lonely, almost scary… place.

Boy, how did she wound up there? Did she do something wrong to deserve this? Was this some sort of punishment?

"No!" she whispered to herself. "It's okay, this is nothing. I can get through with this. It'll just be a matter of time. And this isn't too bad. It's just a small cupboard. And I'm just stuck between bowls and pans and what not… wait _pans_? Why would they need pans? They don't eat anything that can be fried…"

Suddenly her thoughts were interrupted when she noticed how close the plates and bowls were becoming. They crushed together and against her. Suddenly she felt her feet turning numb, then eventually her shoulders. She shook her head, but then ended up hurting her head against the handle on a pan.

"Ow! Now really that's just-" she tried to rub her head, but her paws were stuck. She was crammed tight in there, she could barely move. "No, don't think like that Marlene. You're gonna lose it. Just… think positive. Yeah, just think of all the things you could do when you get out of here. Ah, well I could go swimming in my pond; maybe brush my fur, um… oh! And eat some of that leftover seafood cake, maybe take a nap…yeah, maybe I can take a nap now."

She closed her eyes and tried to make herself snooze, trying to keep her positive thinking. Suddenly Skipper's face popped into her mind, and her eyes popped open.

"What if Skipper finds me before the others do and I need to escape? I can't sleep or who knows what he could do when I'm half asleep!"

So she tried to stay awake, and her eyes began to grow heavy by the minute. She blinked, slower and slower by the many times she did. Eventually at one point, she decided to just rest her eyes since it bugged her so much and she couldn't reach them. But when she did, she saw Skipper's devious face again, and she snapped back awake. _Great, not this again_, she thought to herself.

It was an annoying cycle, but she was strong enough to endure it… at least for the moment. She could feel the minutes passing ever so slowly. Her eyes were getting heavier, but the thought of Skipper kept her eyes peeled. She wasn't going to be caught, ever! She began to wonder how long she was in that cupboard. Time was going by too slow… slow… slow… slow… _It's not so bad_, she thought. _I can totally handle this… I can…this is easy… just lay low for a little longer…_

Suddenly she noticed how close the cookware was becoming. Is it just an illusion? She blinked and wanted to rub her watery eyes, but she remembered she was stuck. _Wait a minute_. She tried to move her paws but they were totally numb- they've literally fallen asleep! _No big deal, hey, it just means it's been a lot of time. It'll all be over soon. _Suddenly she felt as if she could see the walls just behind all the cookware. She tried to shake it off, but she could feel her entire body so stiff and numb! _Calm down, just a little longer. You can do this._ Suddenly her heart began to race and a sudden cold chill overcame her body. Suddenly she could hear small dripping. Was it from a sink? Probably from above. But it continued to _drip- drip-drip_ against the sink. Isn't that just annoying? Suddenly she could see the walls closing in around her. _Quit it, you cannot have a claustrophobia attack at a time like this_! The dripping got more frequent, and the walls seemed to be getting closer. Suddenly it was getting harder for her to breathe. Was someone cutting out the oxygen supply on purpose? She swallowed, and she could feel the sickly dry sting when she did. This was getting harder to resist. _Drip-drip-drip_. She began to shiver. The walls were getting closer! Is she suffocating? Is someone trying to crush her? Her heart raced, and she could feel herself squirming. This is just terrible, she can't… no… she has to go… she has to go!

Suddenly she kicked against the door, and finally with a shove she fell out of the cupboard. She drew in a deep breath, as if she just got out of the water. It felt cold yet refreshing to breathe in clean, fresh air. Then with her surroundings looking slightly brighter than before, she realized she made it all the way until morning! This was great! Well, only for a split second because then her heart sank and her ears and whiskers drooped at what she found before her.

Holding up a glass of what looked like punch, decorated with a tiny umbrella, stood the familiar character, taking a sip.

"Morning, Marlene," greeted Skipper sweetly after a sip. "You done playing hide-n-seek with the lemurs?"

Marlene's pupils shrank.

"_How_?" she breathed unbelievably and in horror.


	10. Chapter 10

Skipper gulped down the last of his punch and tossed the glass away, not even caring that it broke into pieces. He loomed over the helpless Marlene, with his flippers on his hips. Marlene began trembling and sat up, inching back towards the cupboard. It couldn't end this way!

"I think it's time we went back home, shall we?" said Skipper, approaching her.

"Skipper, wait! Stop, don't touch me! Wait!" she exclaimed.

King Julien hid under his throne (still believing he was part of a game of hide-n-seek) and suddenly he heard banging and screaming coming from his snack bar. He cocked a brow wondering what the noise could be about. He poked his head out and watched as plates and bowls went flying everywhere from behind the counter!

"Eh? What in the name of the royal me do you think you're doing?!" exclaimed King Julien. "Those things are royalty, and some of them are very, very expensive! And the rest are very, very, very, _really_ expensive!"

Suddenly Skipper poked his head up from the cupboard, then he leapt on the top counter with Marlene swung over his shoulder, "None of your business, ringtail."

"Those things _are_ my business," Julien snapped back. "Now how do you expect to take responsibility for the broken plates? Those were my good plates!"

"Oh, boo hoo."

Marlene tried to regain her focus, but all this excitement was sure going to her head. Suddenly her eyes were locked onto the flashlight Skipper carried, lying there on the counter beside him. She smiled and reached for it. Once she grabbed hold of it between her paws, she turned herself around and targeted right on his head. Skipper seemed distracted from the argument with King Julien, so with almost everything she had she swung it down. _BANG!!!_ At that moment, Maurice and Mort appeared to watch the commotion and all three lemurs watched Skipper fall onto the counter. Marlene had a chance to escape once more! She dropped the flashlight and hopped off the counter. She scurried passed the surprised and confused lemurs.

"Thanks for the hiding spot!" she cried without stopping. "I gotta get outta here!"

She leapt off the high platform and landed on the ground, but the shock and vibrations from the landing began to affect her now. Her body had been stiff and numb for so long, she was extremely weak now. She tried shaking it off, but then she just sat there for a moment to regain control of her body.

Meanwhile, Skipper was quickly regaining consciousness again. He rubbed his head, shook it a bit, and then he growled. She wasn't going to slip by him that easily!

"S'cuse me, fellas," he said as he hopped off the counter and slid on his belly passed the lemurs.

Marlene still struggled to catch her breath as she began to stumble towards the exit across the pond before her. Suddenly she could hear Skipper making a landing behind her. She turned around as she struggled to stand up on her feet. She stared right into his horrifyingly determined face.

"You're gonna regret whacking me over the head with my own flashlight, Marlene," he sneered.

"You had it coming!" Marlene exclaimed. "Just snap out of it! You're being controlled by Kowalski's love serum!"

"I won't be reasoned out of this so easily," he replied as he approached closer.

"Oh…"

Marlene stepped back until her paws touched the water behind her. She looked at him, absolutely terrified, but she won't be taken down so easily! She back flipped into the water and dove in to get out of the habitat.

"Oh no you don't!" exclaimed Skipper, diving in after her.

Marlene swam through the pond, zigzagging too when she realized he was right on her tail! She made sharp turns over and around, trying to shake him loose, but he knew how to swim in water as well as she did. So she ditched the tactic before she could tire herself by splashing out of the water and out of the habitat. But Skipper was right behind her! She had to lose him… somehow.

The two left the lemurs puzzled by the twist of events as they scratched their heads. The trio has never been confused about anything before, and it hit them as a bit of a shock.

"Um, Maurice," King Julien began. "Is it just me, or does that penguin be taking this game a little bit too seriously?"

"I'm starting to get the feeling it's not a game anymore," Maurice shook his head.

"Aw…" groaned Mort.

* * *

Elsewhere, the other penguins scavenged for their lost friends, searching high and low. They had been looking all night, but somehow Skipper managed to slip out of their sights. They searched in all exhibits of the zoo (except the lemur's habitat for some reason). They were very much exhausted, but they knew this was something that had to be done soon. Throughout their search, Kowalski also managed to take excellent care of the antidote in a fragile yet secure test tube.

"Where could they be?" wondered Kowalski out loud.

"Let's hope to find _just _Skipper," added Private.

"You're right. Marlene can't afford to be with him. I'm actually surprised the serum's been active all this time. That is some seriously _strong_ stuff."

"Do you think they're both alright?"

"Oh, I'm sure they're fine. As long as they stay distant from each other, everything should be okay."

"Uh huh," nodded Rico as he got down on his flippers, sniffing out like a hound.

"It sure was quiet this whole time, actually," said Private. "You'd think there might be a bit of a ruckus."

"True," nodded Kowalski. "Marlene must be doing an outstanding job laying low."

Suddenly they could hear screaming from behind, rather distant, but it was growing louder fast. All three penguins turned around and were scared out of their minds to see a crazed Marlene running towards them!

"AHHHH!!!!"

"Marlene!" exclaimed Kowalski.

"AHHHH!!!!"

Marlene didn't even bother stopping or even responding to them as she screamed and darted passed them! She was in total frenzy. Suddenly they turned around to see who could be sending her on a panic (as if they hadn't already guessed), and sure enough they watched Skipper sliding on his belly towards them. But he didn't stop or respond either as he crashed right into them, knocking all of them off their feet! Even the antidote went flying to the air, but luckily Kowalski caught it into his flippers safely, even when he wasn't on his feet. After a bit of a struggle they stood back up watching the terrifying ordeal.

"What do we do now?" asked Private.

"Now begins the pursuit," replied Kowalski. "Let's move out!"

All three got on their bellies and slid after them.

Meanwhile, Marlene continued to run with all her strength she had. She looked back and spotted Skipper dead on her trail. He looked extraordinarily determined- heck, he was crazily obsessed! Marlene gasped when she saw how much closer he was getting to her. She turned back around and dashed forward with all her might. She didn't want to meet what was waiting for her if she was caught! Is there anything that could help her? Anything? Anyone? S.O.S.! Help!

As she approached the zoo office, she was suddenly taken aback when the door opened. Alice! She clawed at the ground to stop herself from getting any closer from her and immediately turned around. But when she did – _SMACK!_ Marlene and Skipper began tumbling over towards the open door! Alice didn't seem to notice them as they managed to slip by behind her, still tumbling. Once they entered, Alice immediately closed the door behind her. She was listening to her MP3 player after all to notice the two.

They continued to tumble down the hall, until they finally stopped- with Skipper sitting right on top of Marlene! Marlene felt pretty dizzy and bruised all over, but the sudden realization of her capture snapped her right back to focus. She was horrified to see this misfortunate turn of events! Skipper shook his head, and then he looked down at her and smiled.

"Now, Marlene," he nearly hissed. "Where were we?"

Marlene gulped, "Please, I really don't want to do this!"

Suddenly a growl echoed throughout the hall. Marlene blinked by this unexpected sound. She looked at Skipper who looked just as surprised as she was. Then she watched his beak turn upwards and watched as his expression changed to total shock. Marlene turned herself over a little to see what he could possibly be looking at. Then her eyes widened as she stared down in the face of a very vicious-looking, very angry, very upset… very small… poodle? With its crazed eyes and its lips covered with its own foamy saliva, it growled viciously at the two.

"I-is that an angry poodle?" asked Marlene bluntly.

"So we meet again," growled Skipper. "Mr. Chew. Of all times!"

"Mr. Chew?"

The poodle growled viciously as it shook its head a round in a twitchy manner. Skipper and Marlene stood up and began to back up. Mr. Chew wagged its tail threateningly and approached them.

"Talk about killing the mood, pooch," scolded Skipper. "Stay behind me, Marlene, I've dealt with this guy before."

Marlene had no idea how the heck Skipper knows this thing, but somehow she knew she had to trust him, despite what they had been through before. The next thing they knew, the rabid poodle leapt at them and Skipper shoved Marlene to the side with him, dodging its attack. Skipper and Marlene skid across the tile floor before they got up. Mr. Chew looked back and barked viciously.

"Retreat, Marlene, retreat!" exclaimed Skipper and together they ran down the rest of the hallway.

The dog ran full speed after them, growling and snarling as they went. Eventually Skipper and Marlene dashed through a door to a room, and just seconds before Mr. Chew entered as well. They worked together to slam the door shut on its face. Mr. Chew continued growling, barking, and scratching against the door, its jaws snapping through the opening. Saliva flying everywhere, Skipper and Marlene continued giving their all to keep the door closed, both of them with their backs against the door and using their feet and shoulders for muscle. Then Skipper turned to Marlene and was moved by how she was giving everything she had. Skipper growled, deciding that this wasn't going to last for much long.

"No dice, Marlene," he ordered through his clenched beak. "Retreat, slip through the window up there."

Marlene's face lit up and she looked up at Skipper. She saw how he was forcing everything he had to keep the door closed.

"I can't just leave you!" she replied, continuing her heaving against the door. "You're crazy!"

"Only for you."

Marlene turned back to him. She was touched! But this wasn't the time for romanticizing! Her brows furrowed.

"No way, Skipper," she replied. "We got in this together, I'll be right here by your side!"

_BAM!!!_ The door swung open, Mr. Chew still growling and barking mad. Marlene and Skipper backed up cautiously.

"Happy now?" asked Skipper rhetorically.

Mr. Chew snapped its jaws. This time it had them cornered. Marlene darted her eyes around and spotted a broom leaning against a file cabinet, conveniently placed beside the angry mutt. Quickly, Marlene slid towards the broom. Mr. Chew snarled and pounced with its jaws wide open.

"Marlene!" cried Skipper, leaping in after her.

Before Mr. Chew could reach her, Skipper tackled against it, throwing it to the side. While it sat immobile for the moment, Marlene kicked the broom away from the cabinet and watched it fall hard against the dog's head. _CRACK!!!_ The dog immediately fell over. Skipper chuckled and puffed his chest proudly.

"Hot dog, Marlene!" he exclaimed.

"Let's get outta here," said Marlene as she heaved the broom from its place.

As she did, Skipper waddled away towards the door, shoving the unconscious poodle out, and then closed the door. Marlene huffed, dragging the broom towards the window.

"Here, Marlene, allow me," said Skipper with a smile and with a slight bow.

Then he managed to lift the broom up and set it right towards the window.

"There," nodded Marlene. "Now we can get outta here."

She was just about ready to climb up the broom, until Skipper shot out his flipper on her shoulder, stopping her from escaping.

"Don't think that after all this, I've forgotten about some business we have to take care of."

Marlene gulped, "_Why?_"


	11. Chapter 11

Barely on the hunch, the trio of penguins slid towards the zoo office where Kowalski was certain Skipper and Marlene were. They slid towards the door, but they knew they wouldn't be able to enter through there as they stood back on their feet.

"Now what?" asked Private.

"Just as we've always done," replied Kowalski. "Through the window."

The penguins rushed to the side window and one by one the penguins stacked themselves to reach for the window. As Kowalski hopped last, with the antidote still at hand, he was bracing himself for another penguin to hop on… except there was nobody left. Rico sniffled when they all realized what they were waiting for.

"Just," Kowalski sniffled a bit. "Hang on. We'll get there."

Kowalski looked above him, and knew they wouldn't be able to reach it- without Skipper. He strained his flippers to reach out farther. He groaned as he began to feel the pain and stress he was giving his arms.

"Just a little more," he breathed. "Higher, now."

Private, sitting at the bottom, pushed his toes to reach higher, and Rico did the same. It boosted them for another few centimeters, but they still needed a way to go.

"C'mon, just a little more," groaned Kowalski.

Private began to stand on his toes, Rico was already stretching his whole arms all the way, and Kowalski was beginning to stretch his spine! They all heaved themselves, working their all to reach their goal.

"Kowalski," breathed Private. "I don't know how much longer I can hold it."

"Just a little more," he replied sorely.

This was true. They reached much higher now, but they were pushing themselves nearly to their limit. But they were determined to get inside. No matter how agonizingly painful their muscles and spines were becoming, they were going to find their way inside! Kowalski's flippers were just centimeters away now… almost… almost… just a little more… Beads of sweat fell, shoulders throbbing, and muscles burning, they were approaching their goal. Finally Kowalski reached the ledge of the window pane.

"There!" he exclaimed. "Now just keep it there until I've got this open."

"Hurry!" squeaked Private.

"Agh!" growled Rico in pain.

"Understood," replied Kowalski, already heaving to open the window.

He growled as he did, but it was no good. Then he slid the tube of antidote under his wing and continued to reach out to the window and heaved upwards. Private was giving everything he had in his strength, that eventually he realized his feet were trembling. He wasn't going to last!

"Kowalski!" he cried.

"I'm trying, Private!" growled Kowalski through his clenched beak, tightening his entire body for the big pull.

_CRACK!!!_ The next thing Kowalski knew, the window popped open! And then suddenly Marlene appeared out of nowhere, practically tackling him! Almost as if they were in slow motion, the groaning tower of penguins was toppling over! Eventually, the penguins and otter hit the ground, and just as they did, the antidote slipped from Kowalski's grip! Marlene's eyes shot at it, knowing instantly that it had to be the antidote… and now she was helplessly watching it fly into the air!

"NOOOOOO…!" cried Marlene, as if they were still in slow motion.

It spun in the air, nearly in a 360 style spin. Twirling, twirling, then- _SPLAT_!

The broken pieces and liquid spilled everywhere. Marlene kneeled at the sight of her only purple hope of ending this nightmare! Her eyes and jaw twitched, and her heart felt as if it shattered along with the antidote!

"Tell me that didn't just happen!" she exclaimed, nearly on the verge of tears.

The other penguins groaned as they struggled to get up. They all felt weak and painfully sore.

"Please, this can't happen!" Marlene continued to cry. "This can't be happening… it just can't… this isn't fair, this isn't- WAH!!!"

Rico shook his head and then rubbed it gently with his flipper. Suddenly he heard footsteps coming from behind. He shot his head back, and then whistled at his fellow comrades of an approaching enemy. Quickly all three penguins leapt into a nearby bush, just seconds before Alice and her guest caught them.

"I think you should apologize for giving such cruddy slop you call food at the cafeteria! You call that tapioca?!" scolded the old woman, shaking a bony finger behind Alice.

"I'm sorry ma'am, but the food service isn't up to me," replied Alice with annoyance.

"How do you call that customer service, huh? I should be able to get a full refund from that!"

"Ugh, just hang on! Let me get the keys so you can take your dog and get outta here."

"You'll be hearing from my lawyer for this!"

Eventually the two women entered the office, with the old woman still hollering even when the door slammed behind them. Soon the penguins poked their heads out from the bushes and twitched their heads side to side making sure the coast was clear.

"Wasn't that-?" began Private.

"Oh, most humans resemble other humans to me," Kowalski doubted. "Now we've got to restrain Skipper before he causes any more harm until I whip up another antidote somehow."

"Uh, where exactly _is_ he?" asked Private as they continued darting their heads around.

"And Marlene?" wondered Kowalski.

Rico scratched his head and grunted in questioning. Suddenly they stopped searching and total shock and fear froze all three penguins when they all came to the same conclusion. They're both gone, so there's only _one_ possible explanation. Skipper's got Marlene!

"What if Skipper harms Marlene?" wondered Private with worry.

"I'm afraid it might be worst than that," gulped Kowalski. "Of all the unspeakable… and I'm afraid we may have let Marlene down to prevent it…"

Suddenly Rico held his beak as he could already feel his stomach churn and feel even yesterday's lunch creeping up his throat. The thought of Skipper leaping on the chance to commit such a crime haunted him, and his appetite was paying the price.

* * *

It happened really fast and suddenly, Marlene had no idea what was going on at first! All she knew was that her last chance was destroyed, and now she was being drifted off to someplace she has no idea where. On top of that, though she didn't catch the perpetrator's face, she had a clear idea who was carrying her- and she was absolutely _terrified_ of what would happen next. Suddenly, as if she blinked, she realized she wasn't outside anymore. Wherever she was, it was dark. She was thrown backwards onto something… soft and comfy. Then Marlene's heart skipped a beat- she was laying on a bed! Suddenly soft, dim lights filled the entire room. Marlene sat up. She was back to her habitat, but there was something slightly different. Then her pupils shrank when she saw it was scented candles that illuminated the room and filled the air a light perfume of "sea breeze" scent. Then she gasped horrifically when she saw lily petals scattered all over her bunk! She was about ready to take off, until suddenly she was pinned back down to the bunk. She gasped and was absolutely horrified. Skipper sat right above her, his flippers clasped around her waist making sure she wouldn't escape. He leaned in, pressing his beak against her nose, with his devious smile.

"Now, why don't we get to it without anymore interruptions?" he whispered seductively.

"I really don't want to," whined Marlene.

"C'mon, you know you can't resist this."

"I'd very much like to right about now!"

"Why? Don't you like it how warm and fuzzy this feels when we're this close." Marlene didn't say anything as he rubbed his feathery cheek against her fuzzy one. "Is it so wrong of me to keep what I want forever all to myself?"

"But it's wrong if _I'm_ not ready!"

Suddenly Skipper stopped his cuddling and sat himself up, looking down on her and keeping his flippers on her waist. Marlene's body tensed up and she squinted, fearful of what he was up to, when she realized Skipper's expression had softened. It wasn't a sad one, but he calmed down. But she wasn't completely convinced she was out of trouble yet though because she could still see the lust and hunger lingering in his eyes.

"You scare me, you know that?" he asked suddenly. Marlene blinked and wondered what he could possibly mean- and what could happen next. "Actually, you _terrify_ me! I'm terrified at the thought that I'd lose you. That if I don't do something to show you how I love you and that I want to be all yours for eternity… I'll lose you."

Marlene blinked and she could feel her cheeks blush. She wasn't sure if she was ready to hear what else Skipper had to say. She stopped squirming and continued to listen, partly anxiously.

"You can't imagine how much I care about you… how badly I've looked for the chance to give even my very soul to you. How much I wanna make your whole world right here in my flippers." Suddenly Skipper leaned close until his beak was right beside her ear, "I want you, Marlene- nay, I _crave_ for you. For your smile, your flaming eyes, your luscious lips, your soft, creamy fur like chocolate I just wanna nibble on. Your sweet perfume that just drives me crazy and the very ring of your voice I can't get enough of… I _need_ you Marlene. I can't bear to lose you… I want you to know more than anything, I love you."

Did he have an entire speech written somewhere? Did he somehow learn to read and is reading off a Shakespeare poem he tore out of an old book somewhere? Marlene couldn't believe what she was hearing! And she could hardly stand it! This was too much! She wanted to just smack him, just slapping him to the middle of next week! And to scream at him. And to run away. And to cry right in front of him. And to beat on him. To kill him. To hug him. To love him. To kiss him. To actually _stop_ her resistance. To finally _give in_… wait what?!

Suddenly she realized he had leaned closer to her ear to whisper, "And resistance ain't gonna fly, babe."

Marlene instantly felt her body melt practically right through Skipper's flippers. She was totally shocked by this, but she'll unfortunately have to admit… it seemed so insignificant compared to her newly found desires- she actually wants to! She's going to do it! What? What? WHAT?! This was totally topsy-turvy!!! But it looked like she didn't care.

As she closed her eyes tight and puckered her lips gently, it seemed all the events that had happened before and all her thoughts and resistance before didn't seem to matter anymore. Now the only reason why a small part of her was trapped in the flippers of this penguin was because the most of her was now willing to surrender. Seeing this change of state, Skipper gently yet eagerly leaned in and gave her the most passionate and tender kisses he had in all his strength and desire to give…


	12. Chapter 12

Marlene was enjoying every second of it. She was simply sapping in every minute she was in that warm embrace. It all felt so peaceful and romantic. So warm and loving. So amazing and beautiful. So very much… wrong.

Suddenly… very suddenly… it happened as if someone was turning down the volume of a radio, slowly yet immediately. The lust and passionate desire faded away, and Skipper began to feel the light-headedness returning. Suddenly, he couldn't remember what he was doing, or where he was. All he knew was something soft and silky was touching his beak. Whatever it was he had to admit it tasted sweet and delicious, but he already doubted it was something edible. He opened his eyes as if he was waking up from a dream. His vision was blurry, but he could see a brown figure was there before him. Then his eyes widened in horror when he knew who the shape belonged to.

Skipper broke the kiss abruptly and Marlene opened her eyes from her awkward and heated trance. She looked up at him surprised, _why did he stop_? Then she noticed his shocked and blushing look on his face. Skipper's heart skipped a beat and his eye began to twitch in mortal disgust. Marlene blinked, _what happened_?

"What the-" he stuttered already sliding off Marlene, "I'm- you're- we were…"

He waved his flippers wildly in the air; he had never been so confused! What were they doing?! "Smoked salmon! Cheese and crackers! Dear, sweet mother of mercy!!!"

He was so panicked that he wasn't paying attention to his actions as he continued to step back, and suddenly he fell off the bunk- _THUD!!!_ Marlene sat up and looked down at him from the bunk, somewhat dazed and unsure what to do or say. Instantly Skipper stood back up.

"WHAT IN THE NAME OF COD'S FIN IS GOING ON?!!!" he cried.

"J-just calm down for a sec," began Marlene almost softly, but Skipper continued to frantic over the whole situation.

"Is this a sick prank? An illusion? Something's wrong! What was I thinking? Since when??? This- I- Marlene- I WAS SITTING ON MARLENE THE OTTER!!!"

_SMACK_! Marlene had approached Skipper and slapped him across the face.

"GET A HOLD OF YOURSELF, MAN!!!" she screamed as she did.

Skipper instantly snapped out of his panicking state and looked at Marlene wide-eyed. They stared at each other blankly for a moment, and surprisingly the awkwardness wasn't setting in at the moment. They were both simply confused and uncertain what to feel right now. Suddenly Skipper rubbed his cheek where Marlene struck him, barely feeling the sting.

"Thanks, Marlene," he finally spoke. "I needed that."

Marlene wondered if Skipper was finally free from the love serum.

"H-how do you feel right now?" she asked uncertainly, anxious and fearing the answer she would receive.

Skipper continued to rub his cheek and looked at the ground. It was obvious he was still somewhat shaken from all of this. Finally he breathed deeply and looked up at Marlene a little more calmly.

"Very confused," he be replied as he exhaled air. "I can't remember how I ended up here."

Marlene cocked her head to one side, already wondering if he had any memory of what was going on at all. Suddenly she smiled, a very faint one, but something. Skipper was back to his normal self. Suddenly a heavy burden slid off her shoulders as she sighed a breath of relief.

"You're back!" she exclaimed happily. "Thank goodness, you're okay now!"

Suddenly she rushed over to him and gave him a hug around his neck. Almost a little while after that, Skipper pushed her away.

"Whoa, uh," he began and already feeling guilty by the look on her face as he did. "Sorry about that, Marlene, but uh… I really feel awkward about this."

"Right," nodded Marlene understandingly. "Of course, uh. Well, it's a bit of a long story. Take a seat?"

Skipper nodded sat on the bunk and Marlene sat down with him, but not too close of course. She went on to explain how Kowalski's love serum accidentally slipped into the sardine smoothie Private made, and how Kowalski had already concluded the worst and trying to find the cure. She tried to avoid the rather "hard" details, afraid it would make him feel bad. It was the last thing she wanted for the confused, and possibly scared, penguin. She had told him however, of the days they spent wonderfully together and their misadventures. Skipper had smiled at that.

Eventually he sighed and dared to ask, "So what was I doing on top of you like that?"

Marlene blushed and she began to fidget with her fingers, "Um, let's just say you were feeling a… _feeling_, and decided to act on it and…."

Skipper was quiet as he looked at the floor. Then he lightly blushed, "Did we both _really_ agree to do so?"

Marlene's heart picked up the pace and she began to scratch her head, "Well…" She didn't want to hurt his feelings, but she knew he had to know the truth. "…no… no, it wasn't agreed by the _both_ of us. I… didn't… but you…"

She looked at Skipper and she felt guilty to see the hurt look on his face as he drew an angry sigh, "How could I have been so careless and inconsiderate… please tell me it wasn't a frequent thing…"

He looked Marlene, but when he saw the hurt and blush on her face it answered it all. He couldn't remember any of the events, but he was already angry and ashamed of himself. It made him feel weak… and a criminal.

"I didn't hurt you, did I?" he asked.

"No."

"Anyone?"

Marlene didn't answer, making Skipper frightened. "Who?"

"Your team…" she sighed.

"WHAT?!"

"You misunderstood their help, and got angry… but please understand, it's not you're fault."

"How bad was it?"

"They're fine now."

"It's still not an excuse. And this is… this is _unforgivable_."

"But it wasn't you, it was the serum. You don't have to feel so guilty about it."

"It just proves what a weak mind I have. And it all can't be fixed."

He tightened his flippers into fists and growled at himself, and it hurt Marlene so much to see him like this. All she wanted was to make him feel better, and make him believe it wasn't his fault, which was true. She gently yet swiftly put her paw on his shoulder, but immediately Skipper rose from the bunk.

"I'm sorry Marlene, I… I just can't…" he growled without turning to her, only giving her his back. His pride was shattered and he felt his reputation to Marlene was gone with it as well. His dignity was shriveling already; he couldn't bear to admit his fear of looking at her in the face. He began to make his way out.

"Wait!" exclaimed Marlene as she threw herself behind him in a tight embrace. "It's not your fault, and I just wanna let you know that I forgive you for it! Please don't beat yourself up for it, ever!"

Marlene never saw his face, but Skipper's eyes were wide-eyed and he was very surprised by this reaction.

"It's not about if you forgive me or not," he replied. "_I_ can't forgive myself for this. I don't deserve it. I'm sorry, I can't be around."

"No, I won't let you leave like that." Her grip was firm; she was very determined to keep him with her until he can change his mind.

"Marlene, I have to go," he said a little angrily as he began to push her away.

"No."

"Marlene, let go."

"No way!"

"I mean it!"

"Me too!"

"Marlene!"

They struggled, but Marlene was absolutely certain she was going to keep him there with her. Eventually Marlene thought quick and tripped Skipper, causing them both to tumble over. Skipper looked right up at Marlene as she pinned him down. He growled, but eventually eased himself.

"You don't know when to quit, do you?" he asked.

"Neither do you," she replied.

Skipper smirked, making Marlene smile inside as well, but keeping her determined expression. That's when Skipper noticed her light brown eyes, blazing and glowing brightly. He couldn't help but smile at it, but then frowned about it. He was beginning to feel he didn't even deserve to look at them. Marlene could sense his sadness too.

"I can't even say sorry," he began turning his beak away. "There's nothing I can say that can make it all better for you, there just isn't."

Then Marlene smiled, and slowly rose up to her feet. Then she extended her paw at him. He looked up at her and began to wonder what her smile was about.

"Let's start by seeing the others, and let them know you're okay now," she answered.

Skipper smiled, and even willingly took her hand and pulled himself up.

* * *

Already, Kowalski was making a new antidote on the table. He began to mix in the chemicals just like before as quick as he can. However, the others weren't in their best moods as they sat with him at the table. They were beginning to lose hope.

"What if we're too late?" asked Private sadly.

"Let's try to keep our heads up, Private," replied Kowalski.

"I'm doing my best. It's just that I'm really worried for both Skipper and Marlene."

"So am I, but we can't just give up now."

"True." Private sighed, then after a moment. "What unspeakable things could happen?"

Suddenly Rico began to act out a strangling scenario by wrapping his flippers around his own neck and pretending to getting strangled. Then he began making booming sounds, like a gun firing. Then he fell to the ground as if someone had shot him down, and he let his tongue hang as he rolled his eyes allowing only the whites of his eyes to show, portraying the "death" of their friends.

"That is unspeakable!" cried Private.

"Confound it!" snarled Kowalski.

"What is it?"

"Uh!" exclaimed Rico raising his head off the ground.

"I've run out of the love serum itself, and it's a very vital source in order to achieve a proper antidote."

"So, make a new serum," suggested Private.

"Oh believe me, Private, that was my first thought. But it took me a month to create the first batch without counting the countless weeks I've spent researching it first."

"What do we do now?"

"Well, we could probably search for Skipper and bound him until I've come up with the antidote."

"Or put him in the panic room?"

Rico regurgitated a bomb (not lit of course), "_Ka-blamo?_"

Right on cue, Skipper and Marlene slipped down the hatch and stood there watching the team. They didn't seem to notice their presence.

"Now let's not go too severe, Rico," argued Kowalski.

Skipper and Marlene smiled at each other almost in a quiet chuckle. Then they approached behind the pondering team.

"Maybe we can reason with him," proposed Private

"Skipper wasn't always one to reason with," pointed out Kowalski. "But we _can_ tranquilize him as well."

"_Ka-blamo!_" cried Rico.

"Gentlemen, I'm touched," chuckled Skipper and immediately the team whirled around to find him standing there. "I never thought you'd go to the extremes just to make sure I was fine. I'm proud of you boys."

"SKIPPER!!!" All three penguins cried as they rushed around him. But before they did anything else, their rejoice turned into caution since they weren't sure if Skipper was going to attack them again.

"Well, why are you here, Skipper?" asked Private.

"Well this is my base, isn't it?" asked Skipper coolly. "Aren't I allowed to be back inside?"

"But what about Marlene?" asked Kowalski.

"What? She's welcomed here too. But only under my authorization, of course." He turned back at Marlene and winked at her and she smiled back.

"So, does this mean you're better now?" asked Private.

"Well, almost, young Private. Somehow I can't recall what happened, but a little birdie told me what an angry moron I've been to you, men. So I came to apologize. What I've done almost seems inexcusable to me, to a point where it's almost unforgivable." He then looked back at Marlene, and the look on his face almost surprised her. It was as if he was looking for strength to go on. Marlene simply smiled and motioned for him to continue. He nodded and turned his attention back to his team. "I hope I haven't hurt you boys too bad, and probably I'm not even expecting you to forgive me, but I need to you all to know that I'm sorry."

Suddenly, Kowalski's beak quivered and he began to sniffle.

"_Aw_," grunted Rico (this time, finally being able to keep his food down through a touching moment).

"It's okay, Skipper!" cheered Private happily. "You're our leader _and _our friend. We'll always welcome you back!"

"Thanks, boys," smiled Skipper, very much glad and relieved to still be their leader. "Up high, gentlemen."

With that, the penguins exchanged their series of high-fives, their way of letting each other know of their accomplishment together. Marlene couldn't help but feel overwhelmed by the sight of the team getting their leader back. It was obvious they all needed and missed him so much.

"So how did you return back to normal?" asked Kowalski as he wiped a last tear from his eye.

"Beats the heck outta me," shrugged Skipper. "I can't even remember when all of this started."

"Perhaps the effect somehow wore off. After all, hardly anything lasts forever."

"Interesting theory," nodded Skipper.

"Let's just be glad everything's back to normal," entered Marlene brightly.

"You said it, Marlene," agreed Skipper.

_BANG!!!_ Private's first prize fish swung open.

"Ah, ha! Now we can all celebrate!" exclaimed King Julien happily, with Maurice and Mort behind.

Suddenly there were colorful lights beaming everywhere, complete with a disco ball hanging down, and a boom box playing loudly with the beats thumping. This was a weird and random event for the team of penguins and Marlene.

"I guess Skipper's return does call for a sort of celebration," shrugged Kowalski.

"What? Since when was he gone?" asked King Julien as he danced along to the music. "We're celebrating because I am the winner of the hide and seeking game. No one had ever found me throughout the round! Ha ha! That's right! I'm am ze winner!!!"

"There was a game?" asked Private.

Marlene slapped her forehead in frustration when she realized what the lemur king was talking about.

"This is perhaps why we don't miss maintenance day," Kowalski told Skipper.

"Affirmative," nodded Skipper slightly annoyed by the lemurs' intrusion.

But suddenly, once Rico began shaking his head to the beat, eventually when he went to the dance floor too, the other penguins joined in! It turned into a big party for all of them. Though Skipper wasn't much of a dancer himself, he had to join the party too. Everyone was having a great time, each dancing the day away to the beat! With a momentous occasion, it truly was the time to celebrate. And Marlene could never have been more proud of herself for it. Still however, as she danced to a fast beat in a circle with the lemurs, she'd take quick glances back at Skipper. No matter how hard or how much she danced, she couldn't help but feel something was left undone.


	13. Chapter 13

About several days later, one evening Kowalski had just returned to the HQ after he carefully recycled the cursed love serum to biohazard, taking care that it was all cleared away and no one would ever be affected by it either. The HQ was quiet this evening. It seemed the others had gone- until Kowalski found Skipper sitting at the table with his mug of coffee. Already, Kowalski found out right away something was wrong with his leader. Skipper simply sat there, stirring his mug with a sardine almost in a sad rhythm while resting his head on his opposite flipper. Kowalski made sure _all_ of the love serum was put away without harm, right?

"Skipper?" asked Kowalski as he waddled over. "Is everything alright?"

Skipper drew a deep breath, "Never better, Kowalski."

Kowalski blinked, things didn't look okay.

"Are you sure?"

Skipper stopped stirring his coffee. Then he looked he looked up at Kowalski with a saddened look.

"This love serum, you know it better than anyone else right? You sure it's all worn off?"

"I… I actually can't be all that certain. Why, how do you feel?"

"Well… I certainly don't feel like pouncing on anyone. But ever since the serum… I feel like if something's missing."

"Missing? Well, probably memory's all that you're missing."

"That's another thing!" Skipper suddenly realized. "Lately I've been dreaming weird dreams. I feel like… well, Marlene mentioned we had spent several days together like the way I never even thought at all doing, especially with her! But lately I've been dreaming those things. Like I actually _remember_ doing all those things with her…ugh, it's actually giving me the heebie-jeebies."

"Why? You don't enjoy doing those things with her?"

"What? No! I mean, I actually do feel the warm, fuzzy _feelings_… when I'm with her but… I'm not supposed to remember them, right? And suddenly I'm dreaming these things… this is spooky stuff, Kowalski!"

"Indeed."

"Then… there's these nightmares…"

"Nightmares?"

"Nightmares, man! Y'know, bad, horrible, unimaginable dreams?"

"Yes, yes, I understand that, but… how unimaginable?"

Then Skipper stared down at his coffee mug, staring into his black reflection (he preferred drinking black coffee) and began reminiscing the horror that dwelled inside his mind.

"I think I remember doing those horrible crimes." Then he growled to himself before he continued. "It makes me feel dirty and just down-right slimy about it. Her screams and resistance… I ignored them all!"

Kowalski just kept quiet as he could see Skipper's eyes in wide shock. Skipper disliked crime and wrong-doing of any sort, and knowing how far he had gone with it, Kowalski understood why he would feel this way.

"Seeing it with my own eyes… I just don't how I can face her again." Then he looked back up at him. "And how I treated my own team. How you've all managed to forgive me so easily is still shrouded in a black cloud of mystery to me…"

"It's obvious to us, Skipper!" said a small voice from the hatch.

Skipper and Kowalski turned around to find Private and Rico coming down the ladder from the hatch and waddling over towards them.

"Your mind was under the serum. We knew deep down inside you needed our help. That's why we never gave up on you. We wanted you back, Skipper, and by Joe we did just that!"

"Uh, huh!" Rico nodded his head furiously in approval.

"But I don't believe that's all you're moping about, right Skipper?" continued Private.

"Private, I appreciate your enthusiasm," Skipper shook his head. "But I think you may just be too young for such matters."

"Maybe," frowned Private. "But I know so much that perhaps you weren't entirely under the serum's control. Like right now, you know there's something left you gotta do."

Skipper looked down at the ground for a moment, and then he raised his head to face his team, all of them smiling at him.

"Private's right, Skipper," smiled Kowalski. "The serum's purpose was to amplify all feelings of affection toward their special someone of interest. It perhaps may not have been all coincidence that Marlene was there and you went loco for her. There's still a possibility you could make it up to Marlene. She believed in you throughout the run, even now she still keeps her window of hope open to you. You still have a chance."

Skipper smiled and his eyes darted over his team's comforting and hopeful faces. Then his brows furrowed as he rose from his seat and drew in a deep breath.

"S'cuse me, boys," he announced proudly as he exhaled his breath. "But I've got unfinished business to attend to."

With that, Skipper waddled over to the ladder and was ready to climb up and head over to Marlene's habitat.

"Good luck, Skipper!" piped Private cheerfully.

Skipper climbed halfway up the ladder before he turned around and smiled coolly, "I don't need luck, Private."

Then he practically hopped out of the hatch, actually performing several flips in the air before making a perfect landing on the platform. The sun had already faded behind the skyscrapers of the city and the stars were appearing. As he stared over at the otter's habitat, he sighed heavily as he could feel his confidence slipping already.

"I need a miracle."

* * *

The lights were out inside. Marlene had already gone to bed, not having the slightest idea she'll be expecting company soon. Not even a little that she wounded up setting herself to some bad timing. As she slept soundly, she was also dreaming. And by her facial expression- it was a nice dream.

She was smiling- snoring a little- but smiling. Only she knew what she was dreaming about. She turned over to one side and giggled a little. She was murmuring in her sleep, and still giggling. Suddenly she rolled over to her back and was wrapping her arms around air, as if she was holding onto something-or someone- and she was puckering her lips! She was smooching the air!

_"I love you," _she murmured.

"Marlene?"

"Yes, Skipper?"

"Marlene."

She was giggling and continued to kiss nothing. It was a long while until his voice rang again.

"Marlene!"

"Huh?" She opened her eyes suddenly, and the next thing she knew, she was falling! "Waah!"

"Marlene!"

She blinked as she tried to comprehend what the heck was going on! She was on the floor, staring down at orange, webbed feet. Her eyes slowly rose to see the whole figure, and when she did she couldn't help but feel extremely embarrassed! She felt her heart sinking and her cheeks turning hot! She hopped to her feet instantly.

"How long were you standing there?!" she exclaimed almost in horror. "You weren't supposed to see that! How'd you get in here?! I told you before I hate it when you come in without asking!!!"

Skipper smiled at her, desperately trying to hold back his laughter. He was already biting down on his tongue! It was just too much what he just saw… all of it! Even her reaction right now was just priceless!

"W-wow, Marlene," he stuttered between chuckles. He could feel even himself blushing as well, but just slightly.

"No! Don't tell me! I don't wanna hear it!"

She clasped her paws over her ears. She just wanted to crawl in a hole and just die! She wanted to run away so bad! This wasn't supposed to happen! She was practically at the verge of tears! But not now, she had to stay strong somehow! Suddenly Skipper put his flipper on Marlene's shoulder, making her look up at him and setting her paws down.

"Easy, Marlene," he smiled and then he wove his flippers around slowly. "I didn't see anything..."

Marlene's heart raced before she pouted, "What are you doing here anyway?! Even when you were controlled by the serum, you were still polite enough to knock first!"

Then Skipper looked at the ground for a moment, still managing to keep his smile somehow. Then he puffed his chest and faced Marlene, with a softened look. With that look on his face, Marlene can only wonder what he could want.

"That's actually what I needed to talk with you about tonight," he began- surprisingly coolly and calmly. "I… I've realized things."

"Things?"

It took a little bit of his courage and all the confidence he was famous for to continue what he had to say. It was important she heard this, to free himself from guilt and to save their friendship.

"Kowalski was right," he blinked as he stated this.

"What do you mean?"

"The love serum was designed to amplify feelings of affection. Apparently feelings of affection that I already had. The reason I did all those things wasn't just because of the serum only… I…"

Then Skipper noticed Marlene's eye began to twitch and she moved back a little. She was utterly terrified. He couldn't understand why at first until his eyes widened in realization.

"Marlene! Not THAT! Okay, _that_ was the serum's doing. But the other things we did together. I remember them."

Marlene calmed down a little. "You do?"

"10-4 Marlene! I remember the fun, the laughs, and the smiles. It's because of that serum I learned a little something about, loosening up and fun and… all that. But the important thing is that it showed me that you might mean a lot more to me than I'm giving you credit for."

He was losing his train of thought; he had no idea if he was apologizing… or if he was making a different point. By far this was a whole different story that he wasn't even sure he was ready to tell. He was clueless that the moment was coming fast! He looked at Marlene, staring at her waiting expression. This was truly the point of no turning back. And somehow, Marlene knew it too. And frankly… she wasn't sure if she was ready herself. And she found herself wondering if the nightmare was starting all over again, or he truly meant it this time.

Skipper looked at the ground for a short moment, trying to think what he was trying to say. His was heart was hopeful for something, but what? However, when he looked back up at Marlene, his eyes widened in surprise at Marlene's expression. It looked hopeful and encouraging. Could it be that the serum wasn't only affecting him? And suddenly he caught a small hint, but he knew it was there no matter how small, a tiny smile, and suddenly all his confidence returned. Then realization hit him… if he wanted her to forgive him for his dirty crimes; there was only one thing left to say.

As soon as he realized this, he smiled to his cool grin, and then he began to chuckle. Marlene's face suddenly shrank to a confused look.

"Huh?" she asked.

Skipper eventually cut his chuckles and smiled warmly at Marlene, "I'm sorry. It's just that… can you believe I came here to apologize for everything I've done these past several days, and suddenly here I am…"

He smiled at her, loving the very sight of Marlene's eyes glowing and her smile growing to a happy grin. Everything made sense now… when a final memory came to his mind. She was giving in before he snapped out of his trance…

"Suddenly… I don't feel like it anymore."

Marlene's expression was priceless, and Skipper couldn't have been happier. Her whiskers had drooped and her paws and shoulders slumped.

"WHAT?!" she cried angrily.

"You heard me, I lost all feeling of sympathy," replied Skipper cockily as he turned his back on her and smiled quietly to himself.

Marlene couldn't have been anymore furious at Skipper before. How dare he?

"You stupid jerk!!!" she growled. "You have no idea what I had to put up with all this time! Your… your dirty flirting, your mushy talk, and most importantly your STUPID DANCE!!!" She could feel herself blushing as she remembered that horrific thought. "But you know what, I don't feel sorry for you anymore either! I even smacked you just to snap you out of it, and I did it with passion! And I've never felt any sorry for doing it! You selfish, cocky bird! To think I was going to forgive you for everything, but you blew it off! I hope you're happy!"

Skipper looked back at her with his cool and confident expression, his signature smile he was always known for (besides his leadership and ranking position). Marlene was taken aback by this.

"Oh yeah, Marlene," he said almost in a whisper. "_More _than satisfied."

He turned around and smiled at her warmly. Marlene was about ready to run to the hills! She was very much familiar with that look, except those blue eyes… they didn't hold any sort of hunger or lust, but… love?

He approached her, without laying a flipper on her, and he leaned in just at a safe distance yet close enough to intimidate Marlene anyway. How she was blushing terribly and her desire to smack that cocky smirk off his face!

"Would you mind sharing with the rest of the class what exactly you were dreaming of earlier?" he dared.

Marlene's heart skipped a beat. The pupils in her eyes shrank drastically and suddenly it became harder for her breathe.

"N-n-nothing," she whimpered.

"You sure?"

"… What are you trying to do? Interrogate me???"

"If it comes to it."

"Why are you so interested what I dream about anyway?"

Skipper thought it over until finally he simply chuckled, "So that I can make up to you for what I've done… maybe making your dirty dreams come true can do the trick?"

Marlene practically melted. Did her ears deceive her?

"Did you take more of the love serum again?" she asked unsurely.

"Quite the opposite," Skipper replied. "I don't need some artificial chemical to show how much you mean to me."

Marlene has never felt so caught in between anything before! She was very much unsure whether she should make a break for it, or stay put. These words and actions were too familiar!

"Besides," Skipper continued on. "I remember you telling me you loved me just a moment ago." Marlene's eyes were wide open. Her heart was racing, and she could feel her whole body was heating up!

"I WASN'T DREAMING ABOUT YOU!!!" she exclaimed.

"And in response to that," Skipper approached Marlene.

She wanted to run away now, but her feet were practically cemented to the floor. Then suddenly, he wrapped his flippers around Marlene and hugged her in a tight and warm embrace. It was as if he squeezed pressure out of Marlene, because she felt a change in herself almost drastically. Her heart eased, and she could feel herself growing mellow into his flippers like that.

"I do too," was all he said.

Marlene could feel cold tears forming in her eyes; this was the sweetest and most thoughtful action he had _ever_ done to her, even in his love sickness! She returned the hug with a tight embrace and she snuggled in his feathery neck. It was a warm and tender moment, for the both of them. They were both smiling tenderly and warmly. Eventually Skipper even began to bury his beak in Marlene's soft and silky-smooth fur, drowning his nostrils in her sweet scent. Marlene allowed herself to be showered in his sweet gesture of affection as she tightened her grip on his shoulders. Each one was holding the other for dear life! In that instant, they knew they would always be a part of this warm embrace, this little world they've managed to create in their arms. And sealed away for good in their kiss. Slow and loving. Fevery yet considerate, to say the least.

Perhaps, there was no mistake in taking the love serum after all. Maybe Skipper needed a little push, which Marlene gladly accepted. In fact, they both knew that there was no doubt about their feelings for each other so much, the next morning when the penguins at HQ awoke that morning- Skipper's bunk remained empty.


	14. Chapter 14

It was a bright and warm day like any other spring day. Well to Marlene it seems that every day was a bright and gorgeous day. She stood outside her cozy little shelter and basked in the warm sunshine. It was a peaceful day as she watched a swallow couple dart across the blue skies. The wind was sweet and cool as can be and the clouds were as creamy-looking and foamy as an ice cream float.

"I could never have seen a more perfect day," Marlene said cheerfully and took a deep breath.

She stepped onto the grass and peered into the crystal clear waters of her pool. She smiled at her reflection and thought how pretty she really looked. _Huh_, she thought to herself. _No wonder King Julien checks himself out in the mirror, it's actually kinda fun_! It was until now she hadn't thought how good-looking she was. The more she thought about this, the wider her grin grew. She turned her head in every possible perspective and was just having fun with impressing herself.

She was having so much fun, that she didn't even notice a dark figure lurking behind her. It approached Marlene from behind and she didn't even notice! She was looking into her bright eyes, until on the last second she caught a glimpse of the shadowy figure in the water. She couldn't even react until the next thing she knew she was swooped off her feet!

"Wah!!!" she screamed as she felt someone wrap around her waist and pull her back.

"Hehe, you should be a little more alert than that, Marlene," chuckled a familiar voice still keeping a firm grip around her waist.

Marlene growled playfully when she realized who it was.

"That was a cheap shot, Skipper!" she retorted jokingly. "It's easy to sneak up on an enemy when her back's turned. Why don't you face me like a real man?"

"Not even a man can face _you_," purred Skipper as he brought his beak close to her ear.

Then suddenly Skipper turned Marlene around to face him. There he was; her hero in shining armor. Marlene blinked and could feel her body heat up.

"Never send a man to do a penguin's job," he smiled as he leaned close to Marlene.

He stared ever so tenderly in her eyes, so confident and so cool. It was his secret weapon to get straight to Marlene's heart. He knew she couldn't resist his confident and seductive charm and she never will.

Marlene's eyes drooped and smiled tenderly. She closed her eyes, giving Skipper the impression she wanted a kiss… he was wrong.

"Boop," Marlene poked the tip of his beak.

"Ow!" replied Skipper.

"Nice try, bird brain," smirked Marlene. "But I've seen that trick before."

Skipper released Marlene and rubbed his beak while Marlene shook her finger at him. Since their fiasco had cleared up, Skipper and Marlene had become pretty close. Skipper continued to lead his team to super spy missions and whatnot, and yet still made enough time to spend with Marlene. Everyone in the penguin team agreed that their leader was back and here to stay. Everything had gone back to normal… but to Marlene there was still something about her dear friend that hadn't quite gone back to normal.

Skipper smirked deviously, "Looks like I'll have to change tactics then, don't I?"

"Hmph!" Marlene rolled her eyes. "Good luck."

Marlene then took off away from him and leapt into her pool. Skipper smiled and shook his head. She was ready to take him on for a friendly chase… it was up to him if he wanted to make it wild.

Skipper dove into the water after her, feeling the cool rush and the foaming bubbles against his feathers. Marlene looked right up at him from below the pool. Skipper spotted her down there too and smiled playfully. She smiled back at him and then swam further away from him. Skipper shook his head; she wasn't getting away from him easily. He swam after but she'd always slip away from him. This was her element after all. Marlene turned and twisted, thinking she could confuse him, but Skipper's body could keep up with his eyes. Wherever he saw Marlene, he would be there at the same moment. She looked so graceful and so fun, the way the sun rays brought out the different vibrant hues of blue from the water that really highlighted Marlene in a gorgeous way that Skipper had just about enough of her.

Marlene dashed and sped through the water, enjoying herself. It was always so much fun to be around Skipper. Just knowing the fact that her dearest friend, who happens to be the head of his pack and a hilariously charming penguin, is chasing after her wanting to have her by his side made her feel on top of the world. If she could she would sprout wings and just soar into the wondrous skies; flying among the clouds and chasing shooting stars, just she and Skipper together. But for now, they can only chase each other in her habitat's pond, but it's still just as good. She's never felt so happy and alive- just to know that Skipper was right behind her. She turned around to see the cute and confident smile when she realized he wasn't behind her anymore.

She stopped suddenly and looked to her left, and then she looked to her right. She spun around in a 360 degree spin, but she still couldn't find him. The pond looked completely empty. The pond's not even that big and he still managed to disappear? Where could he have gone? Suddenly Marlene grew uneasy, how could he just be gone? She swam a little further but nothing; he was nowhere in the water. She decided that he had given up and left the water, which would be very peculiar since she didn't even notice him leaving. Suddenly once more Marlene was grabbed by her waist! Suddenly she was spinning round and round and shot out of the water, still spinning! She gasped and sucked in a gulp of air in both surprise and lack of oxygen. She was still spinning in the air, with water sprinkling around her in a sort of magical effect; she wondered for a split second what she must look like with the water around her like that. Suddenly she realized the spinning stopped, but the world was still spinning around her! When she regained focus, she realized Skipper held her up in bridal style.

"Gotcha didn't I?" he smiled cheerfully. "Now _that's_ how you do a Cork Screw!"

Marlene groaned, "You jerk."

"Hehe, me?" he chuckled. "You were the one playing hard-to-get." Then he dipped her low, forcing Marlene to grab onto his head. "You were doing it on purpose to get my engines running, didn't you?"

"Oh please!" shrieked Marlene as her cheeks blushed.

Then Skipper laughed, "Aw lighten up, you know I'm just playing!"

Then he set her standing upright. Marlene smiled and shook her fur. She looked back at him and saw that smile on Skipper's face. It was then the question crossed her mind.

"Did… the serum ever wear off?" she asked suddenly.

Skipper's happy expression turned into a curious one. "What's that supposed to mean?"

Marlene shrugged, "Well, after the whole… thing happened, we were pretty cool about it. But now lately I'm starting to get the feeling everything didn't go _exactly_ back to normal."

Skipper thought it over and sighed, "Maybe I should let it down a little, huh?"

"Well…"

"Sorry, I really can't help it. To be honest I've been noticing that myself. But still being honest… I really can't help it."

"Huh? What are you saying?"

"Heh, don't think I'm still in the serum's 'mind-control effects.'"

Marlene rolled her eyes, "Uh, huh?"

"And don't freak out when I say that truthfully… I'm doing it on my own free will."

Marlene's eyes popped and her whiskers drooped. "HUH???"

"I never noticed how cute you look when you blush like that before the incident… and I can't resist temptation to make it happen."

Skipper warned her she wasn't going to react well, but she did anyway. Of course she would! Does this mean that he could attack her whenever he wanted to?! Marlene was dumbstruck. Should she run away again?

"And before you go running to the hills," Sipper continued. "I've been at this for a while and you seem to go along with the flow… any reason behind _that_?"

Marlene gulped; she realized she was now put on the spot.

"Uh, what do you mean?" she stammered and turned to the ground. "I just thought you were playing and… I thought I could play along too."

Skipper smiled, it was always fun to watch Marlene blush- and it always makes him feel even better to know that he makes her feel that way. He's the only one that can do that. And Marlene began to feel irritated with this fact. She's never blushed so much around him before, and she was beginning to think that it was a terrible habit she had better change soon. It would give Skipper too much ego.

Then Skipper shrugged, "Well, I could always turn it down a bit."

Marlene looked up at him with a raised brow.

"Or," Skipper leaned close and lowered his voice. "We could just keep playing this little game of ours."

Skipper's eyes drooped and shook his brows up and down. Marlene's eyelids drooped in annoyance… her blush turning redder.

"Okay," she began and turned around. "I'm going to go find something to hit you with now, so just wait right here."

Skipper threw his head back and laughed, "Aw, c'mon Marlene, it was a just a joke! There's no need to use lethal force on your old pal now-"

_SWISH_! Suddenly Skipper's eyes popped wide to see a plastic baseball bat waving at him! _Swish, swish, swish_! She found something to hit him with pretty quick!

"MARLENE!!!" shrieked Skipper.

"Hold still!" yelled Marlene. "I'll whack that serum out of you soon!"

"Wait, stand down, I'm fine!!!"

But she wouldn't listen to Skipper's pleas as she continued to swing her bat trying to land a hit. Skipper kept dodging her attacks, but he was surprised how determined she was to hit him! And though it was a bad time to think about it… he was already thinking how cute she looked when she was angry! Then he blushed a little, this was getting a little wierd.

"Just stay still, Skipper!" scolded Marlene.

She swung once more, _swish_! Then _SLAM_! Skipper caught Marlene's arm in his grasp and brought her close up to him. Marlene blinked, shocked by his action. Then she shook her head and tugged trying to get her bat back.

"Let go!" she shrieked.

"Would ya just stop with the bat already?" Skipper growled, trying to keep the bat in his grip.

"Not until_ you_ quit that cutesy, flirting game with me!"

"Just give it up!"

"No!"

"Marlene!"

"Skipper!"

Finally Skipper yanked the bat away with one pull, but it didn't end there. Suddenly Marlene pounced on him, knocking him over! _WHAM_! It certainly knocked the air out of Skipper, when Marlene landed on him and he began to choke in his breath. Marlene heard this as her head rested on his chest and then sat up to look at his expression. She got up almost immediately and watched him gasp for breath and his eyes shrink. Then finally he passed out. Marlene panicked.

"Skipper?" she asked. "Skipper, can you hear me? It was an accident, I didn't mean to!" she cried before she got on her knees and continued to look down on him. It didn't look like he was breathing, and he looked so helpless! "Oh, what do I do? Just wait right here, I'll get Kowalski… wait but I can't leave you! But, but!"

Then she pressed his chest, wondering if she actually killed him! Then the first thing that came to her mind: CPR. She paused and began to blush.

"No way! Uh, uh!" she shook her head and got up. "I don't even know how! I'll just get Kowalski."

But as she got up she began to think what the team would say to her if she came back with their help but it would be too late. She should've tried everything in her power to save him, right? She's the only one that can right now! She was the one who killed him! Then she felt her own heart had stopped beating for a split second. She made her decision.

She got down on her knees and lifted Skipper's beak upwards. It looked like he was knocked out cold! Her cheeks began to burn furiously and her breathing picked up speed. This was ridiculous! _Okay,_ she thought. _You can do this. It's just CPR, okay? Okay_? She opened his beak a little, sucked in air, and dove in. She pressed her lips against his beak and exhaled inside. She could feel his chest rise against hers and she got up. She looked at him fearfully, wondering why he wasn't waking up.

"C'mon!" she scolded.

Then she leaned in again and blew more air in his beak. She was very shaky; she had no idea what she was doing right now!

"Wake up!" she cried already feeling her eyes burning.

This was utterly embarrassing and scary for her! Was she even doing this right?

"Just open your eyes!"

Then she dove in once more, blowing more air. Then she got up and still didn't see him waking up. It just simply looked hopeless! It really looked like he could be gone!

"Oh, Skipper!" she shrieked. "What… what've I done?!"

"HAHAHAHA!!!"

Marlene screamed her lungs out! "WAHHHH!!!"

Skipper just exploded into laughter, scaring the living daylights out of poor Marlene. Then Skipper slowly sat up and kept laughing. For the moment, Marlene couldn't figure out what was going on!

"Skipper!!! You're okay!" she cried.

Skipper kept laughing, "What? You really think a tackle like that would_ kill_ me? Marlene, I'm impressed!"

Then he threw his head back and kept laughing. Then she felt her temperature skyrocket through the roof and her body tensing up. Boy she had never felt so angry in her entire life!

"You… you MORON!!! YOU TRICKED ME!!!" she growled through clenched teeth.

Skipper wiped away a tear in his eye, "Don't worry, Marlene, I'll show you how to perform a _proper_ CPR someday. You were just a bit rusty."

"I don't need you to show me anything!!! I just wanna grab you and rip your limbs apart!!! You, you…!!!"

Marlene kept screaming, but she was so embarrassed and so angry, she couldn't put any words into her voice. It was just plain gibberish and screaming, she literally went nuts!

Skipper couldn't have felt anymore satisfied with himself since he led the team on an expedition to the lost city of Atlantis. He could see her blushing and waving her arms around; he knew he was the only one that can make her this worried. He was having fun just watching her!

Then he smirked, "You know, Marlene, if you keep this up you'll be running out of breath soon."

But Marlene kept screaming and hollering. Then Skipper got up to his feet and pulled the otter up. She continued to holler. Skipper just rolled his eyes and kept smiling at her with his eyelids drooped. It made his heart melt to know she was so crazy about him like this.

"I WON"T EVER FORGIVE YOU FOR THIS!!!" she finally screamed.

Then she sucked in air and began to pant from her moment irrationality. Her throat felt dry and sore all of a sudden, but she was still very much ticked off.

"Marlene," Skipper finally spoke. "I think you could use a little bit of CPR."

Then Skipper leaned in, eyes shut, and with his beak puckered. Marlene then felt her body melt. It was the most refreshing feeling in the whole world. Her body had been at its highest peak, and then suddenly it immediately dropped into her most relaxed state. A sort of rush overcame her. She closed her eyes just waiting for contact.

Instead though, Marlene felt a gentle kiss on her cheek. She felt that kiss might have lasted a long while before Skipper pulled back. Marlene opened her eyes and wore a puzzled expression. Skipper simply smiled warmly at her.

"We've got all the time in the world," he smiled as he wrapped his flippers around her waist in a warm embrace. "Why don't we take it slow this time?"

Marlene smiled, "Does this mean?"

"Only if you want to."

Then they leaned their heads close until their foreheads pressed against each other.

"This time I can wait," Skipper said.

"I think I can take my chances," smirked Marlene.

The couple stayed in that warm embrace. They were sure this bond had set on fire. Now with their lessons learned, they hoped to keep that flame burning for a long time. This couple has so much potential, that even the other penguins didn't have a doubt of any mishaps happening between them as they watched the romantic scene unfold before them through the periscope in their HQ. Kowalski nodded with approval to the other penguins as soon as he pulled away and they all exchanged high-fives. Skipper and Marlene's future sure looks promising now. Way to go guys, mission accomplished!


	15. Final Thoughts

Woo hoo! So we've finally come to a close on "The REAL Love Smoothie," which I can tell you right now it was the most fun story I've ever written so far! Lol! XD So along with the final chap, I also leave some of my own final thoughts on the story.

I think I did a pretty decent (if not great) job at keeping characters in check. He he, my favorite characters to write were actually Rico and Skipper! I tried to make him a little goofy and fun, yet maintain his role as being the muscle of the team like in the series, plus he's my fave character in the whole team! (AH! 8D) And Skipper…LMAO!!! When I knew what kinda character Skipper was, it almost struck me like lightning to play around with that cool and confident, kinda cocky attitude. OMG, there times along the way I gave chills even to myself! XD

Although I'll admit, I had to use some reference for synonyms and how to type "gestures" in paragraph form from several other stories (both from Fan-fic and outside), because I'm sure some will agree writing out some actions are pretty hard to type when you don't have much words (or vocabulary :P) to work with to describe them. (^_^')

One thing I noticed too, I might've rushed myself a little too quick, because now that I'm looking over my story again, I'm spotting some grammar errors that I'm just mad at myself for not catching! DX Well, I don't wanna turn this into an Easter egg hunt or anything to find them all, knock yourself out, but trust me I know.

I'm some of you already noticed, but the last chapters were coming in pretty slow, but when you're back in school, I'm sure you can all understand how busy I am. So I think that's why I might not be all that satisfied with the final chapter.

Why is it that on the last chap, I feel that I haven't submitted a great ending? Yeah, I really feel that maybe I should've taken more time to write out the ending with a little more thought, but I really wanted to submit the final chap ASAP, y'know?

Lol! So, to wrap this up, I hope I hadn't freaked you guys out _too_ badly. I received several reviews containing wide-eyed expressions, but trust me, several times I had even surprised _myself_ how dirty and EVIL I made Skipper look! O.O

But c'mon, don't tell me you didn't like it, lol! XD …eh, don't answer that (unless you really want to ^^)

But my gosh, I had so many urges to just let you all know that I'm not that evil (or crazy) to let Marlene fall into such a dark fate, but replying to you all one at a time was just too much, especially now. But hey, that's what these final thoughts are for.

Now, I hope I wasn't too random w/ this story either. I know some of the obstacles seem a little off, but when I watch the series that's the feeling I get when I watch the actual show. So I thought I could capture some of that spontaneous and random funny stuff for my story, but I think maybe I didn't quite capture it, or maybe I did. I'd like to receive some feedback on this. So don't hesitate to bring that up!

And I hope I really plugged all the plot holes in this too, another thing I was unsatisfied w/ this last chap, I really feel I haven't answered some questions regarding the love serum as properly and/or clearly as I should have. He, maybe I can re-write this someday. Overall, I think I've done a decent job on this, and like I said, I had a blast writing this! And I can't tell you how much I appreciate your reviews and critique!

Lastly, I'll admit when I first started on this project, there was a whole other ending I had planned in my head, but suddenly when a brand new episode of the "Penguins" aired, I was shocked at how identical my ending was w/ that episode! DX Argh! That totally ruined my ending, but I think this ending wrapped up just as good, if not better. If curious what the original looked like, feel free to PM me, but it's not much, just different than this ending you've just read. Maybe I can use it for a future project instead? O.o

And by the way, why do you suppose Skipper was still missing the next morning? Well, that's up to you to decide. Maybe just patching things up w/ Marlene, having some final words, maybe some snuggling, maybe some smooches… or something more? Lol! That's for the readers to decide! My treat to you guys, for being great sports to the story! Which by the way I was really inspired to give you all a great story! It's because of you guys, this story was actually more of a success than my first story to POM! (And others for the matter :P) Well, 'til next time right? I hope you guys had as much fun reading this as much as I had writing it. Critique, questions, and comments are always welcomed. Well, hope to see you all again in the future! Skilene 4ever!!!

JV's Jack

EDIT 3/30/10:

Well guys, the long overdue reedit of probably my most popular story "The REAL love Smoothie." I realized how much I really loved the story, I couldn't leave it alone with some of the grammar errors scattered around, so hopefully I got 'em all. Please let me know if I missed any^^

Well not only have I made some grammar changes, I think some readers familiar with the story would also note that a few words and phrases have been changed, so hopefully it might feel like reading a new chap. And finally, a very special treat for you guys, that's right, a new and final chapter! Woot! As a thank you for making my PoM stories such a success. :D

And hopefully there'll be a brand new project headed your way later on, so keep your eyes open for it ^-^

And for more Skilene goodness, check out a vid on Youtube titled "One More Night- Skilene." It's under the username JMVpokefan. It could sure use some support, and I'm hoping you can get a treat out of it too^^

Well that's all for now folks, please tell me what you think, all comments, questions, and critique are welcomed! Until later, Skilene forever! PoM rox my sox! XD

JV's Jack


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